The recent controversy involving government firefighters and private volunteer firefighters brought to light how ill-equipped and how inept this supposedly safety and prevention agency we call Bureau of Fire Protection. The BFP once again got entangled in this messy word war with a private volunteer fire fighting group on the issue of water.
The inability of the BFP was the issue in Cito Beltran's January 8 column in the Philippine Star. As Cito said, "why should we pay for their services when there are volunteer groups that are more efficient in providing firefighting skills?" One of the reasons cited by the BFP for its failure to immediately respond to emergencies is the state of our roads. "If the roads are narrow then why can't they get smaller firetrucks to get in" Beltran added.
This reminded me of the tiny firetrucks of Davao City 1st District Representative Prospero Nograles. The teeny weeny firetrucks have been the butt of jokes and sarcasm here in the city but come to think of it, isn't this what Beltran was referring to?
Of the P52.61 billion budget allotted for the Department of Interior and Local Government for 2008, only P4.88B will go to the BFP. Unfortunately, the agency's budget seems not enough to pay for additional firefighting equipment and protective gears for the firefighters who are facing their lives on the line every time they respond to an emergency.
