UP Visayas quells bomb threat, suspends classes

By Joseph Bernard A. Marzan and Jennifer P. Rendon

The University of the Philippines Visayas was the target of another bomb threat on Thursday, Oct. 2, this time at its Iloilo City campus.

In a statement, UPV Chancellor Clement Camposano said the university authorized an evacuation of the Iloilo City campus after students of the UP High School in Iloilo received bomb threats.

University officials sought assistance from the Iloilo City Police Office, which coordinated with the Explosives Ordnance Division of Police Regional Office 6.

Police declared the campus clear of security threats at 12:35 p.m., but faculty members of the UP High School in Iloilo and the College of Management were instructed to shift to alternative modes of instruction.

Students and transients residing at the Balay Ilonggo dormitory were allowed to return, and all other offices in the Iloilo City campus will resume regular operations today, Oct. 3.

“We assure our stakeholders that the security and safety of UPV constituents remain this administration’s topmost priority,” the chancellor said in his statement.

“We thank everyone for their cooperation and solidarity.”

“We also thank the ICPO and the PRO6 EOD for their quick response.”

This is the second bomb threat reported by the university since Nov. 29, 2024, when an alleged device was reported at the Miagao campus.

In both incidents, the threats were relayed via social media.

Gerthrode Charlotte Tan-Mabilog, director of the UPV Information and Publications Office, told Daily Guardian that the latest threat came via Messenger from the Facebook account of a UP High School in Iloilo student that had been hacked.

Messages were initially sent to some of the student’s classmates in Arabic on Wednesday evening, Oct. 1, with follow-up messages in English.

The student’s classmates immediately reached out to UPHSI Principal Edelia Braga, who referred the matter to Tan-Mabilog in the early hours of Thursday.

They were instructed to take screenshots of the messages and continuously monitor until the start of classes.

“Before midnight [on Wednesday], the student[’s Facebook account] was hacked,” Tan-Mabilog said in a phone interview.

“[They] only discovered this when they couldn’t access their account.”

“The account changed [language] to Arabic, and then started sending messages to four of their classmates.”

“Their classmates alerted them, but they couldn’t see because it was hacked.”

The hacked account continued to reach out to other classmates and chat groups that initially were limited to one class section but later spread to other sections and even the high school’s science club.

An evacuation was also conducted for students and workers in a building under construction, and students were sent home after student council officers reported rising tension among students.

“This decision was made as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of students, faculty, and staff, and was based on thorough consultation between the UPV Crisis Management Committee and the UPHSI principal, faculty, and staff,” Camposano said in a separate statement.

He added that police authorities were informed immediately.

Police Capt. Michael Tuburan, chief of Iloilo City Police Station 7, said they received the report at 11:15 a.m.

Tuburan said that when personnel arrived, school staff had completed a full evacuation and initial ocular inspection.

The Iloilo City Police Office Explosives Ordnance Division Canine Unit conducted paneling operations, and by 12:35 p.m. found no explosives or hazardous materials.

Tan-Mabilog said UPV will coordinate with the Philippine National Police Regional Anti-Cybercrime Unit 6 to help identify the hacker.

Bomb threats coursed through social media and hacked accounts have disrupted schools nationwide in recent years, and under Philippine law such threats may be subject to penalties under Presidential Decree 1727 and related cybercrime statutes.