Pranksters make up 98% of 911 calls

MANILA, Philippines — Nearly 98 percent of calls received daily by the government’s 911 hotline are from pranksters.

Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos yesterday warned prank callers to refrain from flooding the emergency hotline number with nuisance phone calls, stressing that authorities would not hesitate to file criminal cases against violators.

“I’m warning you. We know where your prank calls are coming from. You’re on camera,
 we know your location,” Abalos told journalists.

Prank calls are punishable under Presidential Decree 1727, and those who are caught could face imprisonment of not more than five years or a fine of not more than P40,000 at the discretion of the court.

“This (911 hotline) is for the efficient and quick resolution to accidents or crime. Please, do not misuse the system,” Abalos said.

Bernard delos Santos of the e911 National Call Center said that under the new 911 system, they are receiving an average of 30,000 calls a day, with only 700 or 2.33 percent considered legitimate distress calls.

It means 97.67 percent were either prank or drop calls.

With the new system, Delos Santos they are able to filter prank calls.

“With the new system… they can identify and they can locate (prank callers), because of the capabilities of the new system,” Delos Santos said.

Abalos, Philippine National Police chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil and other officials under his department showcased the capabilities of the e911 services at the PNP Command Center at Camp Crame.

During a simulation exercise, police from the Quezon City Police District responded to a robbery scenario in Barangay Payatas in 56 seconds.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government earlier signed a memorandum of understanding with network solutions company Next Generation Advanced 911 and telecom firm PLDT for the donation of technology for the 911 emergency hotline.