ILOILO CITY – The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) is strengthening its campaign on the Flag and Heraldic Code after a Philippine flag was used as a car cover here.
“This only shows that we still have to educate the public. The flag is our national symbol. It should be treated with respect,” said Carminda Arevalo, NHCP OIC executive director.
Speaking to Manila Bulletin on the sidelines of the 150th birth anniversary of journalist Rosendo Mejica on Wednesday, March 1, Arevalo said that NHCP must partner with local government units (LGUs) and other stakeholders to inform the people of what is stipulated in Republic Act No. 8491 or the Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines.
THE Philippine flag was used as a car cover in Iloilo City, an act prohibited under the Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines. (Iloilo City Police Office-Mandurriao)
Police arrested a 25-year-old man in Mandurriao District over the weekend after he allegedly covered a car with the Philippine flag upon the instructions of his boss.
Lt. Joebert Amado of the Mandurriao Police Station claimed the man was not aware of the prohibition.
But the law states that using the flag as "drapery, festoon, tablecloth, or as covering for ceilings, walls, statues, or other objects" is strictly prohibited.
Arevalo said this incident only shows that many Filipinos are still not aware of the code. “We are not only talking about the flag, but also of the Philippine national anthem,” Arevalo said.
Major Shella Mae Sangrines, spokesperson of the Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO), said violators of the code face a one-year imprisonment and fined a minimum of P5,000 and maximum of P20,000.
The ICPO formally filed charges against the man before the Iloilo City Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday.