Mall guard sacked for destroying young girl鈥檚 sampaguita for sale
A video circulating on social media shows a security guard at a mall in Manila asking a young girl wearing a school uniform to leave the mall premises but destroying the sampaguita flowers she was selling in the process. (Screengrab of viral video)
MANILA, Philippines — A security guard at a mall in Metro Manila was dismissed after a viral video showed him destroying a girl’s sampaguita for sale just outside the mall premises.
The viral video showed a girl wearing a school uniform, sitting on the mall steps, when the security guard approached her, asked her to leave, and destroyed the sampaguita flowers she was selling.
“We have called the attention of the security agency to conduct an immediate and thorough investigation. The security guard has been dismissed and will no longer be allowed to service any of our malls,” the mall said in a statement on Thursday early morning.
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According to the text on the video circulating on social media, the girl and another child were just outside the mall to take shelter from light rains.
Article continues after this advertisement“Pinagbawalan sila magtinda sa mismong lugar, kaya pinaalis sila. Ngunit, ayaw nila umalis kasi lumalakas na yung ambon ng oras na ‘yun. Wala silang masilungan, pero ang nakakadurog ng puso ‘yung sumunod na pangyayari,” it read.
Article continues after this advertisement(They were barred from selling on the mall grounds, so they were told to leave. However, they didn’t want to leave because the drizzle was getting stronger at that time. They had nowhere to take shelter, but what broke our hearts was what happened next.)
In response, the mall said, “We regret and sympathize with the young girl who experienced an unfortunate incident outside our mall.”
READ: Mall guard kicking out young sampaguita vendor dismissed
Meanwhile, the guard’s security agency apologized for the incident on Thursday.
“May this serve as a reminder to all agencies of the values we must uphold in performing our duties. It is crucial to prioritize de-escalation and avoid letting emotions take control of our actions,” it said in a statement.
“We are truly sorry for any distress this incident may have caused. Rest assured, we will continue to remind our team to act with empathy, compassion, and professionalism at all times,” it added.
