The president of the Philippine Fireworks Association has called on relevant agencies, particularly the National Police, to intensify their interdiction efforts against smuggled fireworks which pose a clear, present, and verifiable danger to public health, safety, and security.
PFA head Joven Ong sought the help of PNP for renewed vigor in apprehending those selling illegal fireworks, most especially the dreaded Piccolo which accounts for 57 percent of all the fireworks-related injuries recorded by the Department of Health.
In an open forum during a recent Fireworks Safety Seminar that the PFA conducted, several stakeholders asked why they were having a hard time getting permits when illegal fireworks were openly being sold in Divisoria in Manila.
This call was promptly answered by the PNP Firearms and Explosives unit which vowed to focus their operations on Divisoria, the preferred dumping site of smugglers for illegal fireworks such as the highly dangerous Piccolo.
“This is what is saddening, the illegal fireworks sellers are openly selling while some legal fireworks companies have a hard time securing permits from the local government units,” Ong said.
Ong lauded efforts of the Bureau of Customs to apprehend illegal fireworks coming into the country.
“This is the first time that I know of that a Bureau of Customs Commissioner has actually made a memo directing all ports to be more vigilant in apprehending illegal importations of fireworks. For this, the fireworks industry is grateful,” he said.
“[But] the illegal fireworks are already here. What needs to be done is for these smuggled fireworks to be confiscated, the importers and distributors to be apprehended at the soonest possible time before these cause more injuries that will be blamed on the legal fireworks industry,” he added.
Ong appealed to Interior Secretary Ismael Sueno to come out with a circular giving permits to those wishing to sell legal pyrotechnics.
“There are some local government units who are wary of giving out permits to sell in their respective areas. We pray that these mayors will find it in their hearts to allow the legal fireworks entities to sell so that the consuming public can have an option where they can buy safe and legal pyrotechnics. It is more dangerous when people cannot buy legal pyrotechnics and end up buying from illegal fireworks sellers whose products are substandard in quality,” he said.
