A viral graphic card claims that Metro Manila Development Authority General Manager Nicolas Torre III said the 911 emergency hotline response arrives within five minutes upon receiving a call. This is fabricated.
On Aug. 16, a user sent a message to VERA Files Misinformation Tipline asking to verify a graphic card posted on the same day by a Facebook account branding itself as a news page.
The card bore a photo of actor and performer Basty Askri along with this remark criticizing the slow response of the 911 hotline. Below it is a photo of Torre and his supposed statement that read:
“Mabilis po talaga rumesponde ang 911. Limang minuto lang dumadating kami agad. Alam po yan ng taumbayan (911 really responds very quickly. We arrive within just five minutes. The public knows that).
GEN NICOLAS TORRE III
MMMA General Manager
August 16, 2026″
This is fake. The photo used in the card was taken during a meeting between Torre and Meralco officials on Jan. 14 to discuss possible areas of cooperation between the agency and the electricity distributor to ensure street safety.
In a Facebook post, the former police chief belied the post and even challenged the FB page to release a video in which he said the remark on Aug. 16.
“Kung may ebidensya kayo, ILABAS NINYO (If you have evidence, show it). Kung wala (If none), call this for what it is: BULLSHIT. FABRICATED CONTENT. FAKE NEWS,” he wrote.
Torre, however, previously pushed for a five-minute emergency response time when he was chief of the Philippine National Police. In June 2025, he said that people who dial 911 would receive a police response within five minutes upon receiving a call.
As MMDA general manager, Torre introduced on Feb. 27 the agency’s reformatted Metrobase 136 hotline that ensures five-minute response to road emergencies to prevent traffic congestion.
The fake post surfaced after a post by Askri denouncing the slow response of 911 during a medical emergency involving his father went viral on social media.
As of writing, the untrue graphic card published by FB page Intel News PH (created Nov. 16, 2025) has so far garnered 200,300 reactions; 9,400 comments; and 6,800 shares.
