Emergency hotlines for all LGUs sought

Marikina City Rep. Bayani Fernando wants to require telecommunication companies to provide local emergency hotline numbers to all local government units.

Under House Bill 4016, he proposed that all telecommunication companies be required to provide a common three or four – digit hotline number to serve as a local emergency hotline within 90 days upon request of a local government unit covered under their service area.

“Having local emergency hotlines ensures that in the event that there is a need for fire, medical, police or rescue assistance, the first responders such as the Philippine National Police, Bureau of Fire Protection, local hospitals, Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, the barangay will act in timely, efficient, and in effective manner as all coordination efforts are confined at a local level,” Fernando said.

He pushed for the final passage of his bill, citing that “there is an essential need for the government to deliver immediate emergency services in order to secure life and property at all times.”

The proposed Emergency Hotline for LGUs Act tasks the LGU to establish a call center to service all calls to the emergency hotline assigned to the LGU.

“The hotline numbers provided shall be “call only” hotlines and must be reachable via cellular phone or landline of any telecommunications provider, without the need for a prefix or area code, “Fernando said.

All calls to the emergency hotline shall be charged a reasonable rate by the service provider chargeable against the account of the caller to discourage prank calls, he said.