Advisers

Merrill Faye M. Rubis, MSCJ

Discipline

Criminal Justice

Abstract

Traditionally, barangay officials rely on patrols to maintain peace, but in urban areas like Barangay Karuhatan, challenges such as hostility, harassment, resistance, and resource shortages increasingly hinder operations. These issues weaken the efficiency of barangay tanods and highlight the need for stronger community engagement, better resource management, and improved peacekeeping strategies. This study used a quantitative descriptive-correlational design to examine the challenges faced by barangay officials in patrol operations at the Barangay Karuhatan, Valenzuela City. A total of 55 respondents were purposively selected for the study, comprising 25 barangay officials and tanods, and 30 residents. The study utilized a validated self-made survey questionnaire in gathering data on the demographic profile, problems encountered, and patrol effectiveness. The descriptive statistics, frequency, percentage, and weighted mean were used in the study to summarize the responses of the respondents. The one-way ANOVA was employed to test the differences in the problems encountered by respondents belonging to different age groups. Most respondents were male (59%) and in their middle adulthood (46–55 years old, 27%), showing patrol operations are mainly handled by experienced personnel. The most urgent issue was hostility, especially verbal abuse (WM=3.88), followed by harassment, resident resistance due to lack of cooperation, and resource shortages, particularly lack of personnel (WM=2.49, Disagree). The greatest impact on efficiency was insufficient legal knowledge (84%), while perceptions of hostility, resistance, and limited resources varied significantly across age groups. Overall, legal competence, manpower shortages, and community hostility emerged as the key barriers to effective patrol operations. The conclusion of the study is that the patrol activities in Barangay Karuhatan are performed by middle-aged male officials, but the lack of manpower underscores the need of young volunteers. The most pressing problem is hostility, particularly verbal, while harassment and opposition from residents also impede efficiency. The existence of significant differences in perceptions verifies that knowledge of the law, manpower, and cooperation from residents are the essential deficiencies. To overcome these, the study recommends an Integrated Capacity Building and Community Peacekeeping Program.

Keywords

peace and order, Harassment, Hostility