In addition to requiring the vaccination card against COVID-19, several shopping centers began to implement a review with a metal detector to be able to enter those surfaces.
Jorge, who went with his family to the El Dorado shopping center in La Aurora, Daule, in addition to asking for the vaccination card, was told days ago to wait to check him and his wife (except their children).
When consulting the guard, he replied that due to security issues and by order of the administration, this measure was being applied. This in the face of the wave of insecurity that has also affected shops and businesses in Guayaquil and in neighboring cantons such as Daule.
In social networks, users of El Rosado Corporation shopping centers have also reported and commented on the application of this new requirement. “In the El Dorado cc… now they track weapons with a metal detector. More fear of crime than COVID-19 “, published Estefanía.
Even at the main door of this shopping center (which faces León Febres-Cordero avenue) there are lines of users waiting for their turn to be checked by the metal detector before passing through. This was the case on the afternoon of this February 2 at the El Dorado shopping center.
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In Riocentro Sur, on Av. 25 de Julio, and in Riocentro Los Ceibos, on av. of the Fire Department, the line was short at a few doors, four or five people, on the afternoon of this 2.
“They quickly handed me a metal detector, through my wallet too,” says Teresa, 36, who days ago came across this “new provision” at the entrance to Riocentro Norte, located on Av. Francis of Orellana.
When she arrived, a worker from the mall He gave instructions to whoever was in charge of passing the detector. He told her to treat people politely and explain that it’s a security measure, she recalls.
Some users already go with the card in hand and, immediately, raise their arms for the review, which consists of passing the metal detector over the body, as well as through the suitcases or bags carried by men and women.
Manuel Cucalón, general manager of the Guayas Police, says that the use of metal detectors is not prohibited. Therefore, businesses can use it without problem and without authorization from these Executive Branches, as a valid security measure.
In this case, the action that several shopping centers and other businesses have implemented is by self-management or their own initiative, since there is no provision in this regard by the Intendancy or the Government of Guayas, adds the mayor.
“Both the carrying and possession of metal readers is not prohibited by the legal system. In other words, the establishment, be it a restaurant, a bank, a shopping center, that decides to use them would not be violating any rule, because it is a security measure,” Cucalón remarks.
For some users, measures such as checking with a metal detector gives them a little more confidence, security, because it is a way to prevent hitmen or armed criminals from entering.
For other citizens, on the other hand, this measure (passing the detector) increased their sense of fear because it reminds them that “we are in danger”, in addition to the fact that in a certain way, they say, it harms citizens because “we are all suspects” now.
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“I know that it is a preventive measure and it seems good to me, but given the scope that criminals now have, I do not think it will serve to stop a robbery, for example. Criminals make their strategies and will evade any measure”, thinks Teresa.
And in fact, on social networks, users complained about those who immediately commented on where they thought they could enter without being checked.
But the topic of the use of metal detectors is not new. In banking agencies, in private companies and in some shops it has already been used.
And its mandatory use was also one of the issues that arose last October at one of the citizen security meetings held by authorities such as the governor of Guayas, Pablo Arosemena; the mayor of Guayaquil, Cynthia Viteri; representatives of shopping centers and the Chamber of Commerce of Guayaquil, National Police and others.
There, Viteri requested that metal detectors be placed at the entrance of shopping centers that have bank branches, in addition to biometric cameras to identify the face of criminals.
Guayaquil Cantonal Council prepares reform to ordinance for security control in banks that operate inside shopping centers
At the end of that meeting, on October 18, 2021, the Mayor announced that the Cantonal Council was going to process a reform of the ordinance on the qualifying rate so that banking agencies that operate inside shopping centers place metal detectors in the income from these, in addition to the cameras for facial recognition and the capture of vehicle license plates.
In the market and on social networks, metal detectors are offered from $10, the cheapest, to those of $50 and more.
This newspaper consulted, by email, with representatives of the El Rosado Corporation about the application of this measure, but there was no response until Friday. There are also no official announcements about it on the websites or social networks of the brands and shopping centers mentioned. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
