THE fire marshal of Taguig City was relieved from his post after one of his men reportedly endorsed a specific brand of fire extinguisher to the Italian Ambassador.
The fire marshal was relieved last Monday, pending an investigation into the case, said Sr. Supt. Bonifacio Carta, spokesman of the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), during the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing.
Carta did not identify the relieved fire marshal. Based on the website of the BFP, the fire marshal of the city is Supt. Melchor Isidro.
He said the officer was ordered relieved by the director of the BFP-National Capital Region, Chief Supt. Jaime Ramirez.
Last Monday, Interior Secretary Juanito Victor “Jonvic” Remulla said the Italian ambassador to the Philippines complained about a Taguig City fire inspector a few days earlier.
“He (fire inspector) went to the consular office of Italy. The fire inspector of Taguig said, ‘This is not the fire extinguisher brand that we recommend,’” said Remulla.
Remulla said the action of the fire inspector was not right, noting that fire extinguishers — which buildings are required to have — should be about “standards” and not a specific brand.
Carta said the bureau, after learning about Remulla’s remarks, “immediately relieved yesterday (Monday) the city fire marshal covering the area mentioned by our secretary.”
He said the fire marshal was removed from his post to prevent him from interfering with the ongoing investigation.
Carta said 17 fire inspectors have been linked to illegal endorsement of fire extinguishers from January to July this year.
“The investigation on the cases is ongoing,” said Carta, adding that most of these cases were recorded in Metro Manila.
Carta said the BFP does not tolerate such behavior among its personnel, noting that the bureau issued a memorandum as early as 2016 banning such practice.
