MANILA -- Students and faculty of the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) were sent home around 4 p.m. Monday following the discovery of a hand grenade in one of the school's toilet.

But police clarified that the incident is neither a bomb threat nor a bomb scare.

In a phone interview with Sun.Star, Pasig Police Chief Jessie Cardona said their Police Action Line received a call at 2:30 p.m., informing them of the discovery of a grenade at the men's toilet at the university's main building in Pasig City.

"It was not a bomb scare. We merely received a distressed call from an individual that the school's janitor discovered a grenade in the bathroom while he is doing routine clean-up," Cardona said.

The police chief immediately ordered the deployment of Special Weapon Action and Tactics (Swat) operatives and elements of the explosive ordinance division (EOD).

Cardona said the grenade is still intact and its safety pin is still on place. But he had no exact description of the grenade yet. "The EOD is still verifying what kind of grenade was recovered."

An insider at the UA&P said the school administration has already ordered the cancellation of classes, sending all students and faculty home amid clearing operation conducted by the Swat team.

High ranking officials of the institution are now conducting a meeting. As of this posting, no official statement had been released by the UA&P on the incident. (Jun Pasaylo/Sunnex)