Opposition lawmaker unimpressed by stats on firecracker injuries

Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman (Photo from Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman on Monday expressed his misgivings over the statement of Health Secretary Paulyn Jean Ubial that the steep drop in firecracker injuries was due to the public’s fear of President Rodrigo Duterte and possible punishment from the government.

While Lagman, a member of the independent minority bloc in the House of Representatives, congratulated the Department of Health (DOH) for the decline in firecracker injuries, he also said that “compliance with the campaign of the authorities against the use of powerful firecrackers due to fear of reprisal from President Duterte is not at all edifying.”

“Imposed submission to law and order due to fear does not signify discipline,” he said in a statement.

“Moreover, attributing compliance to fear demeans the Filipino’s innate character and capacity to observe law and order,” he added.

The DOH reported a 60-percent drop to just 350 people injured during the New Year’s Day revelry.

Ubial had touted the figure as the biggest drop in a decade, but Inquirer research showed only an 8.8-percent downturn compared with the same period last year, with more reports expected in the coming days. —Nikko Dizon/Philippine Daily Inquirer