MANILA - President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday gave a “lecture” to police and fire officers, his close aide said, following a string of mishaps that include a bungled police pursuit in Mandaluyong City and a blaze in his home city that left dozens dead.
Special Assistant to the President Bong Go shared a photo of the President giving a talk to police and fire officers at the presidential guest house in Panacan, Davao City.
Go said the President gave the firefighters a “lecture regarding 911 emergency responses.” The Chief Executive also delivered a talk to police officers, but Go did not elaborate what it was about.
He said Interior Undersecretary Eduardo Año and other high-ranking officials from the Bureau of Fire Protection, Davao City Police, and the Philippine National Police-Highway Patrol Group (PNP-HPG) were also present in the meeting.
Duterte gathered the police and fire agencies in the wake of a string of incidents which exposed weaknesses in government’s emergency response capabilities.
A mall in Duterte’s native Davao City was recently hit by fire, claiming 38 lives.
A blaze also hit shanties in Geresa Subdivision, Davao City on New Year’s Eve.
Duterte, who was city mayor for over two decades, was on a holiday break in the city when the two incidents happened.
Similar fire incidents were also reported around the country during the New Year’s Eve revelry.
Meanwhile, the PNP has been under fire after several Mandaluyong cops in pursuit of a shooter mistakenly shot at a vehicle carrying the shooting victim and those who had come to her aid.
The incident left two people dead. It was not clear, however, whether this incident was brought up during Duterte’s “lecture.”