Dizon denies ‘bullet-planting’ in recent airport incidents

Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon assured the public on Friday that the recent cases of passengers caught with ammunition at airports were not part of a “tanim bala” or bullet-planting scheme.

Dizon referred to three incidents: on March 20 and 24 at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), where two passengers were found carrying one and four bullets, respectively, and on March 27 at Clark International Airport, where ammunition was discovered sealed in a can of shrimp paste.

At a press conference, Dizon emphasized his zero-tolerance policy for misconduct among transportation personnel but clarified that initial investigations by the police and the Office for Transportation Security (OTS), along with video footage, showed no evidence of bullet-planting by airport staff.

“We will not let it pass when passengers, deliberately or not, carry prohibited items like ammunition,” Dizon said in Filipino.

He explained that x-ray screenings detected the bullets and that the passengers admitted they were either unaware of the items or had been asked to carry them.

While denying the existence of a bullet-planting scheme, Dizon reaffirmed his commitment to cracking down on any wrongdoing by transportation personnel.

“We will not tolerate any form of abuse or misconduct. I won’t hesitate to fire anyone involved in such schemes,” he said.

He also revealed that four OTS personnel were recently dismissed for their involvement in a March 6 incident at NAIA, where a woman was wrongly accused of carrying an amulet or bullet.

As a gesture of apology, Dizon and OTS Administrator Arthur Bisnar personally met with the woman over lunch to express their regret.