Laoag City—With Executive Order (E.O) No. 56, series of 2018, dated
May 25, 2018, the provincial government of Ilocos Norte strengthened its
existing emergency hotline services by making all calls to it free of charge.
Dubbed the Ilocos Norte Provincial Incident Response Management (PIRM) 911,
PGIN launched it in December 2016 as a centralized hotline ensuring rapid
response to accidents and other emergency situations through immediate
coordination with the Ilocos Norte Provincial Police Office (INPPO) and other
public safety agencies including the Bureau of Fire Protection and provincial
hospitals.
PIRM 911 operates 24/7 with four landline and mobile phone numbers: 077-600-0948, 077-772-1772, 0999-999-7707,
and 0917-109-9911. Trained personnel stationed at the Provincial Capitol
handles all calls.
Though based in Ilocos Norte, PIRM 911 also has within its jurisdiction
reports from nearby provinces of Cagayan and Ilocos Sur.
Wilfredo Lorenzo Jr., Provincial Information Technology Office officer in
charge, the office overseeing the PIRM 911 operations, reminds the public to
use the hotline responsibly.
“Although it is good news na libre na
ang pantawag sa ating hotline, hindi
pa rin mawawala na mayroong prank at fraudulent calls. Noong nagkick-start ang
hotline, the first three months ng operations ay prank calls. Pero dahil
mayroon pa itong charge noon, tingin
ko maliit pa lang yung instances ng
prank calls,” Lorenzo stated.
Mr. Lorenzo, however, placed the rate at 80-90% of calls since the launch
of PIRM 911 were fraudulent.
“Tulad ng pakiusap at panawagan natin
noong inumpisahan itong emergency hotline, sana naman ay ituring bilang seryosong bagay ang pagtatawag ag paghingi
ng tulong. Hindi natin alam kung sinong nangangailangan ng tulong, kung
sakaling prank call lang ang nasagot
namin, may pagkakataong hindi namin marespondehan nang mabilis yung totoong
nangangailangan,” he warned.
Mr. Lorenzo also warned the public that fraudulent, hoax, and prank calls
are punishable by law.
President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed the E.O. 56 on May 25, 2018. (Ma.
Christian A. Ramos)
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