DILG set to procure 1,500 fire trucks from South Korea

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) is in the process of procuring 1,500 fire trucks from South Korea for the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla said on Thursday.

During the House of Representatives appropriations committee hearing on his department’s 2027 budget, Remulla told lawmakers that he had recently visited the Republic of Korea to secure the deal.

“We are in the process of completing a government-to-government transaction of 1,500 trucks over the next four years so that all municipalities will be covered in the next four years,” he explained.

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READ: DILG to file corruption raps vs 45 BFP execs over firetruck deals

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“Furthermore, we will now remove the corruption that has been endemic in the BFP in the procurement process. A government-to-government transaction immediately erases all doubts because it’s only the governments that talk,” he added.

Earlier this year, Remulla accused then-BFP chief Fire Director Jesus Fernandez of allegedly offering the secretary kickbacks in the form of P1.5-million per fire truck sold to the bureau.

Fernandez had since been relieved from his post and slapped with complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman over alleged anomalies in connection with the procurement of ambulances.

Remulla’s pronouncement at the hearing came in response to concerns raised by Manila 2nd District Rep. Rolando Valeriano that the BFP supposedly lacked funds to procure fire trucks.

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Remulla said the BFP collected an estimated P4.5 billion per year through fees for inspecting establishments for compliance with the Fire Code.

“I think only P1 billion was committed by the Treasury [to the BFP]. Although it should be in a lock box for the use of the BFP,” the DILG chief said. /gsg