Manila, Feb. 17 -- Knowing full well that peace and order should be the utmost consideration of the government in every community to pave the way for a massive development, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. emphasized the importance of attaining it through the legal process, as he cited the significant decline in the crime rate during his administration.

President Marcos said there were only 198,617 crimes recorded in 2023, or the first full year of his administration, compared to the 295,382 crimes committed in 2017, or the first full year of the previous administration.

Likewise, the crime index reported in 2023 stood at 38,436 compared to 107,899 in 2017, or three times lower. The Philippine National Police (PNP) defined "crime index...