9 vehicles illegally transporting LSIs flagged down at Quezon-Bicol boundary

LEGAZPI CITY –– Nine vehicles bringing several locally stranded individuals (LSIs) were flagged down on Wednesday night at a quarantined community border checkpoint at the Quezon- Bicol boundary in Del Gallego town, Camarines Sur.

Glenn Mancera, Land Transportation Office (LTO) Bicol acting operation division chief, in a phone interview Thursday said the apprehended nine private vehicles (seven vans and two sports utility vehicles) were tagged “colorum” and impounded at the LTO impounding facility in Camarines Sur.

Meanwhile, the LSI passengers of the apprehended vehicles were checked for required travel and health certificate clearances, Mancera said.

Mancera said the nine colorum vehicles bring to 31 the number of vehicles apprehended since Friday following the request by the Camarines Sur Interagency Task Force for the Management of Infectious Disease (IATF) to assist them in preventing the entry of private vehicles bringing in undocumented LSIs in the Bicol provinces.

The Camarines Sur Incident Management Team has recorded for the period July 3 to 7 the entry of some 200 LSIs onboard colorum and private vehicles. Of this number, 36 tested positive in rapid diagnostic tests.

Mancera said there were stranded individuals from Metro Manila that either hires public utility vehicles or use private cars and vans to return to Bicol.

“They (LSI) pay P6,000 each for the trip,” he said.

The rising incidence of confirmed coronavirus cases in Bicol due to the influx of LSIs from COVID hot spots areas has prompted the IATF Bicol to tighten security and quarantine measures in all borders and prompted the LTO to create Task Force Colorum.

Colorum vehicles are privately registered motor vehicles operating as public utility vehicles but without proper authority from the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board.

LZB