Shirtless man fined P500 gets apology
Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla on Wednesday paid a visit and apologized to Jhony Lanquino, the man who was fined last week by authorities for not wearing a shirt while mixing cement in front of his house in Mandaluyong City.
“It’s my fault because I did not make it clear what the rules were. Of course, I know there are many people working here. The weather is hot. You would have to take off your shirt. Of course, our officers are zealous. Overzealous even. I told them to take it easy,” Remulla said.
“As long as you’re working, it’s okay not to wear a shirt. But bystanders wandering around without a shirt, that’s not allowed,” he added.
Remulla also reimbursed Lanquino for the P500 fine he had to pay for committing a violation under the Department of the Interior and Local Government’s “Safer Cities” initiative.
The program tasks law enforcers to strictly enforce bans on drinking in public areas, going out in public without a shirt; and karaoke singing beyond 10 p.m., among others.
Ariel Loreto, the barangay watchman who apprehended Lanquino, also apologized to him.
“This is a lesson for us,” Loreto said.
