Navy orders relief of ship captain involved in incident with Vietnamese boat

September 27, 2017

The Philippine Navy ordered the relief of the commanding officer of BRP Miguel Malvar (PS-19) in support to the ongoing inquiry of the recent incident last Saturday in Pangasinan where two Vietnamese fishermen were found dead in their boat.

Col. Edgard Arevalo, AFP Public Affairs Chief, said aside from the commanding officer the crew members were also placed on restrictive custody to ensurethey will be available for the inquiry.

“Both the AFP Chief General Eduardo Año and the Flag Officer-in-Command of the Philippine Navy Vice Admiral Ronald Joseph Mercado ordered a thorough and impartial inquiry on the unfortunate incident involving a Philippine Navy vessel and one of six Vietnamese Fishing Vessels in 23 September 2017,” he said.

“To ensure that such kind of an inquiry will be attained, Vice Admiral Mercado ordered: the relief of the ship captain of his command while the rest of the crew were on restrictive custody aboard the navy ship to make them available for the duration of the investigation; and commissioned third party investigators like the Philippine National Police and the Philippine Coast Guard to do an independent inquiry,” he added.

Arevalo said the Philippine Navy will also conduct an internal investigation.

“All hitherto statements and issuances we are yielding to the DFA who will be furnished with appropriate reports. The updates shall be communicated to its counterpart in the Republic of Vietnam,” he said.

On  Tuesday, the five fishermen who were arrested during the incident off the waters of Bolinao, Pangasinan were turned over to the Philippine Coast Guard who will lead the formal investigation on the incident that started Wednesday. Robina Asido/DMS