The Philippine Navy (PN) said Friday, Jan. 17, that it was investigating three of its personnel who were involved in a fistfight outside a bar in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan.

A video of the brawl went viral on social media on Jan. 16 showing plainclothes men duking it out with another group outside the J1 Diner & KTV Bar as passers-by watched them.

The Naval Forces West confirmed that one party was composed of three PN personnel although it did not identify them.

“Alam po namin ang tungkol sa insidente kung saan nasangkot ang tatlong (3) tauhan ng Hukbong Dagat sa isang pagtatalo sa J1 Diner & KTV Bar. Gusto naming ipabatid sa publiko na seryoso po namin itong tinutugunan. May ginagawa na pong imbestigasyon para malaman ang buong detalye ng nangyari. Makakaasa po kayo na ang nararapat na aksyon ay aming gagawin base sa resulta ng imbestigasyon (We are aware of an altercation involving three personnel of the Philippine Navy at the J1 Diner & KTV Bar. We want to inform the public that we are seriously addressing this concern. An investigation was launched to determine all the details of the incident. Rest assured that an appropriate action will be conducted based on the results of the investigation),” the Naval Forces West said in a statement.

According to a report, the sailors had a heated argument with other customers of the bar which led to a fistfight.

Members of the Puerto Princesa City’s Anti-Crime Task Force responded to pacify the situation.

However, one of the responders allegedly got punched and choked by a Navy personnel.

The Naval Forces West said the actions done by the sailors will not be tolerated, stressing that appropriate sanctions will be carried out if proven they have violated the Navy’s code of conduct.

“Ang Hukbong Dagat ng Pilipinas, lalo na ang Naval Forces West, ay nagbibigay ng mataas na halaga sa disiplina, propesyonalismo, at integridad ng bawat miyembro nito, sa loob man o labas ng serbisyo (The Philippine Navy, particularly the Naval Forces West, deeply values discipline, professionalism and integrity of each member, whether on duty or outside of the service),” it said.

“Bilang bahagi ng Hukbong Dagat ng Pilipinas, inaasahan po namin na ang lahat ng aming miyembro ay magpapakita ng tamang asal na nagdadala ng karangalan sa serbisyo, saanman at kailanman. Ang anumang hindi tamang asal ay hindi namin pinapayagan at agad naming inaaksyunan (As part of the Philippine Navy, we expect that all our members will exemplify good manners and right conduct to bring honor to our service, wherever and whenever they may be. Any inappropriate actions will not be tolerated and will be sanctioned),” it added.

Meanwhile, the Naval Forces West assured the public that it would cooperate with the local officials in the investigation of the incident to determine what caused the brawl.