DAVAO CITY?For riding a motorcycle without a helmet, this city?s tough-talking mayor violated a traffic law and got a ticket for it.

Supt. Noel Fermin, chief of the Traffic Management Group under the Davao City Police Office, and his group were on a routine check on highways and city streets when they chanced upon Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and his companion on Sandawa Road, cruising on separate motorcycles, and flagged them down for riding without helmets

Fermin said they were surprised to see Duterte, who was on a a Virago Yamaha, as one of those being held for not wearing a helmet.

When Duterte asked them what they were doing, Fermon said he stepped in to explain to the mayor that they were doing their nightly rounds to check on motorists and apprehend violators.

The mayor, apparently sensing that he was in trouble for not wearing a helmet, alighted from his bike and voluntarily surrendered his driver?s license, Fermin said.

?I can?t do anything about it,? Fermin quoted the Duterte who spoke in Filipino.

?But he was in a jolly mood, and he was smiling at us and, maybe, to himself for what had happened,? Fermin told the INQUIRER by phone.

?So I issued him a TOP (temporary operator?s permit ticket) for failure to wear a crash helmet,? Fermin said, adding that he then confiscated Duterte?s driver?s license which will be endorsed to the Land Transportation Office.

The mayor will have to pay a fine of P1,500 for the violation and will undergo a required seminar before he can have his license back.

His companion, a back-up security identified as Romirico dela Cruz, was also charged for the same violation.

The mayor?s other security escorts were onboard a vehicle.

Bong Go, Duterte?s chief of staff, said even at Davao International Airport the Mayor would insist on going through the security checks, removing his shoes and belt for scanning.

?He does not want that he be given special treatment just because he is the mayor. He would always say that no one is above the law,? Go told the INQUIRER.

The incident happened on the eve of Commission of Human Rights chair Leila De Lima?s return to the city to investigate the spate of unsolved killings the past months.

The mayor has repeatedly denied allegations that he is behind the so-called Davao Death Squad.

?This city is a dangerous place for criminals,? he once said.

He also recently berated public utility vehicle drivers for over-speeding, which resulted to accidents.