Manila mayor blows top over tattered flag

Manila Mayor Lito Atienza scolded yesterday Western Police District (WPD) director Chief Superintendent Nicolas Pasinos for a tattered Philippine flag flying from the flagpole of the WPD headquarters on UN Avenue.

"I want that flag changed right now," a source quoted Atienza as saying when the mayor called Pasinos using his mobile phone. Before Pasinos could comply with the directive, Atienza had sent a new Philippine flag to replace the tattered one.

Atienza was on his way to City Hall when he passed by the WPD headquarters of Manila’s Finest and saw the badly torn flag, whose red, blue and yellow colors had long faded.

The mayor pointed out that the condition of a national flag flying over city-owned facilities reflects on the people running the facilities.

"Take the case of a police station, if the Philippine flag in front of it is not in good condition, you can’t blame the people for thinking that the station commander is not serious in his job," Atienza said in a statement.

He noted that taking good care of our country’s official symbol is as important as our other duties as public servants and as Filipinos. – Cecille Suerte Felipe