DILG chief hopes to stop ‘culture of corruption’ in BFP
MANILA, Philippines — Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla on Thursday said he hoped to stop a supposedly prevailing “culture of corruption” within the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP).
He made this pronouncement in a press briefing in Quezon City after revealing that his department filed a graft and corruption complaint against BFP Chief Fire Director Jesus Fernandez for allegedly receiving P14.752 million in kickbacks from the procurement of ambulances in 2024, the year when Fernandez was still the chair of the bureau’s Bids and Awards Committee.
“This culture of corruption has to stop,” he said. “I believe it has to start from the top.”
READ: DILG slaps graft raps vs BFP chief over alleged P14 million kickbacks
Asked how the case against the BFP chief would affect the morale of the bureau, which the DILG supervises, Remulla answered, “I hope for the better.”
“There are 40,000 employees at the BFP. These rank-and-file, every day, especially now in the fire-prone months of March and April, their lives are always on the line. Their lives are always at stake. But not their bosses who go home, raking in so much cash,” he added.
He further claimed that Fernandez had a “resort-like, millionaire’s” home in Laguna with a swimming pool, which allegedly contradicted the latter’s statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN).
The secretary also claimed Fernandez’ Laguna home was beside another supposedly extravagant home owned by his “best friend,” who is another active-duty BFP official.
Remulla previously called out Fernandez, accusing him of sending an emissary to a close friend to offer the secretary P1.5 million in kickbacks per fire truck sold to the BFP.
The Inquirer has sought comment from Fernandez on the case and allegations against him, but he has yet to respond. The Inquirer will publish his side once available.
“This will go on. If you think the job of internal cleansing is easy, it’s not; it’s difficult. But I believe we’re succeeding, as we started from the bottom. We’ve made an example of what was happening at the recruitment stage. Today, we’ve made an example from the top,” the secretary said.
The secretary was referring to a set of administrative complaints filed last February against BFP officials in Eastern Visayas, Ilocos Region, and Northern Mindanao for allegedly demanding money from applicants who wanted to enter the BFP.
“Hopefully, this would lead to the reformation of the culture inside the BFP. If we’ve done it with the PNP, we can do it with the BFP,” Remulla said.
Remulla previously claimed that his internal cleansing efforts, which he started when he assumed the DILG secretary post in October 2024, managed to “clean up” the PNP and supposedly rid the active police force of crime syndicates, touting a purported 80-percent public trust rating in the law enforcement agency. /cb
