The inconvenience caused the motoring public by the stopping of traffic on Commonwealth westbound in Quezon City early this week was not because of Vice President Sara Duterte.
Thus said the Quezon City Police Station 14 in a statement issued Thursday night after a video shared by former Bayan Muna Partylist solon Teddy Casiño made the rounds on social media.
The video Casiño reposted on X (formerly Twitter) early Thursday afternoon showed a portion of Commonwealth being cleared of vehicles and a policeman saying that Duterte was expected to pass on the busy road.
"The said incident stemmed from a confusion and lapse in judgement of our policeman manning the traffic during that time," the statement read. "It appears that our policeman overreacted when he stopped the traffic for a few minutes, because of misleading information he overheard."
A check showed Duterte had no engagement in the area. She had been in Mindanao since Monday for the celebration of World Teachers Day and other activities.
The policeman, identified in the statement as Sgt. Verdo Pantallano, was said to have mistakenly heard the letters VP, hence, he decided to clear the traffic as a sign of courtesy and security.
Pantallano reportedly apologized for his mistake.
"Please forgive me. I thought it was because of a VIP (very important person)," he was quoted as saying in Filipino.
Lt. Col May Genio, PS 14 station commander, said the video uploader could be heard mentioning the name of VP Sara.
"I have ordered the relief of my policeman who will be investigated to determine the administrative liability for his actions. We assure the public this incident will not happen again," Genio said.
Injurious, false
Meanwhile, the Office of the Vice President said the viral video was injurious information purely grounded in falsity.
The OVP, in a statement, informed the public that Vice President Sara Duterte was not involved in the traffic disruption.
"The Vice President did not ask the QCPD and will never ask government agencies, including law enforcement bodies, to carry out actions that would inconvenience the public or cause them harm," the statement read.
It added that Duterte "will always put the interest and welfare of the public over her own personal interest and privileges."
The OVP earlier requested the QCPD to conduct an investigation and hold all those responsible accountable for their actions, including the liability of the person who took the video and maliciously appended the traffic stop to the Vice President. AND JING VILLAMENTE