PNP says eighty percent of the messages sent to the “Itaga Mo sa Bato” hotline were in relation to prohibited substances.
The “Itaga Mo sa Bato” Hotline 2286 was flooded by text messages related to the illegal drug trade.
The Philippine National Police (PNP) confirmed that eight percent (80%) of 169 messages sent on the first day since the hotline was launched were reports and information related to drugs.
According to PNP Community Relations Director Sr. Supt. Gilbert Cruz, they have acted on all text messages sent to Itaga Mo sa Bato hotline. He also confirmed that aside from illegal drugs, there were also other concerns which reached their attention through the hotline.
Other concerns of the texters include bomb threats which, upon response by the police, turned out to be negative.
Cruz further clarified that Itaga Mo sa Bato 2286 is separate from the Emergency 911 hotline because the former response number is solely intended to police operations.
On Monday, PNP Chief Director General Ronald Dela Rosa launched the hotline by signing a memorandum of agreement with telecommunications companies, Globe and Smart, officials.
Dela Rosa said that had the hotline been launched earlier, the Davao City Night Market blast must have been deterred.
During the launching of the textline, Dela Rosa was quoted saying, “If ‘Itaga Mo sa Bato’ had been launched earlier, the Davao blast could have been prevented”.
The phrase “itaga mo sa bato” is a Filipino expression that is loosely translated as “cast my words in stone”. It serves as a guarantee that a person will follow through on his promise or vow.
Incidentally, Bato also happens to be Dela Rosa’s nickname.
It is reported that Gen. Dela Rosa initially rejected having a PNP program named after him but later relented when he realized that it would make the program easy for Filipinos to recall.