NEW BILIBID PRISON, Muntinlupa City—Fireworks officials in the country gave love this Christmas as they offered a free fireworks show to the employees and inmates of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) New Bilibid Prison (NBP) here on Dec. 23 despite series of bombardments by different government agencies downplaying the firecracker industry in the country.
Vimie Erise, president of Philippine Pyrotechnic Manufacturers and Dealers Association Inc. (PPMDAI) which factory is located in this town sponsored in behalf of her group a 15-minute fireworks show for the benefit of the low-income earning BuCor employees and the close to 20,000 inmates at the NBP.
Erise who herself experienced police raids and harassment at her factory said anti-fireworks industry efforts being made by many government agencies like the PNP, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Department of Health does not prevent her and the PPMDAI in extending love and offering to personnel of other government agency which they can bring smiles on their faces and make this Holiday Season a little happier for them.
The PPMDAI official found the more reason to offer the worth P80,000 worth of fireworks show knowing the inmates at the NBP, many of which have been gone away from their families in their native places in Visayas and Mindanao for 10 to 30 years and have not seen or personally experience to watch a fireworks show.
“Hindi lang mga empleyado ng BuCor and napangiti natin kahit sandal dahil sa makukulay at maliliwanag na fireworks aerial show na ginawa natin, lalo’t higit ang mga bilanggo sa New Bilibid Prison na alam nating malulungkot dahil marami sa kanila ang halos ay nakalimutan na ng kanilang mga mahal sa buhay at hindi man lang sila nadadalaw ilang Pasko at Bagong Taon na ang nagdaan,” Erise told NEWS CORE.
The all aerial fireworks show was held at the open space parking foreground of the BuCor immediately just after the employees and officials Christmas party.
The inmates at the Maximum Security Compound and at the Medium Security Compound in Camp Sampaguita watched the glittering skies in front of the BuCor office while still kept inside the walls of their respective compounds.
Armando Miranda, Chief Penal Superintendent in the NBP allowed the inmates at the Maximum Security Compound to stay outside their respective dormitories inside walls and gates of their compound to watch the fireworks.
The inmates are 40-250 meters distance away depending on the location of their dormitories from where the foreground parking site is where the aerial show was staged.
Alex Delos Reyes an inmate at Dorm 9-A said he had to keep his head upward looking at the skies for about 15-minutes so that he would not miss a bit of second of variety of huge the colorful and bright lights and loud fireworks sound.
Miranda said the fireworks show brought some mode of joy both to the employees and the inmates.
Miranda said BuCor employees who are only earning meager income seemed to have already celebrated the welcoming of New Year through the fireworks offering of the PPMDAI without spending money for the fireworks out of their already short budget for their families.
Many among the employees also brought along with them their children to watch the aerial show.
Celso Cruz, chairman emeritus of PPMDAI however said that the series of various government agency’s bombardment on fireworks industry would not deter the numbers of accidents during the welcome fete for New Year. Cruz said the safety consumer usage of firecrackers and fireworks should be the responsibility of the community, the local government, the parents especially for the children cracking pyrotechnic products.”How can we prevent children from using fireworks when they are so interested and amazed with the light, fire and sounds”.
The annual New Year celebration firecracker related incidents toll bears children as leading victims.
RA 7183, authored by former rep. Vicente Rivera of the Second District of Bulacan was implemented into law in 1992.
PPMDAI with members from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao was formed in 1993 where Cruz was the founding vice president.
Bayani Sayo, president of the Bocaue Fireworks Manufacturers and Dealers Association said there are still some dealers in his group who failed to acquire products with PS marks from manufacturers causing them to be frightened of the DTI inspection.
But he said, he asked the DTI officials in Bulacan to just let go of them sell the products this time as a Christmas gift to his members with the assurance all the products they will have PS marks or made by manufacturers who have fully complied with the law and procedures on standard safety.
Sayo and his members have been vocal in saying they only borrowed from lending investors the huge capital they had to sell fireworks today and any hampering to their supposed continuous smooth sale would result to them of not able to raise the sufficient money to pay their debts.
Zorrina Aldana, DTI head in Bulacan who conducted the inspection of stores in Bocaue three weeks ago said their target of verification if products bear PS seal or marks are the manufacturers and the way to find them out is through inspection of fireworks stalls.
Joven Ong, president of Dragon Fireworks Inc., also a member of the PPMDAI who also donated product for the aerial show said the DTI has the regular mandate to check for the PS mark of the products just like the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) checking on taxes, the DOH public safety and the PNP and should not be taken into bad light by some members in the industry.
Ong who said that his firm is the only Filipino company so far to have the highest International Certification ISO 9001:2008 and all its pyrotechnic products to have a PS mark said they are eyeing an expanded export destination of Dragon products to more countries next year.
It was the second year that Bulacan offered a free fireworks show at the NBP. Last year, Gov. Joselito Mendoza, now congressman of the third district of Bulacan sponsored the free fireworks display.