Truck driver: I’m not aware of ban to transport people

THE driver of the Badian town mini-dumptruck that figured in an accident last Wednesday said he didn’t know of the order not to transport people using the truck.

“I don’t know about the ban. I have not heard of any directive,” said municipal driver Jose Jimbo Dianon, who remains detained at the Badian town police station jail.

Dianon, a municipal driver for 11 years, said he didn’t receive any order not to use the dump trucks to transport people.

The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) in Central Visayas urged mayors not to use of dump trucks in transporting people for any purpose after a similar accident took 11 lives in Barili town last August.

ACCIDENT

Last Wednesday, there was a request to transport residents of barangay Candees from a funeral when the mini-dump truck figured in an accident.

There were about 40 passengers in the truck. Ten were injured, including Dianon’s wife and 5-year-old daughter.

Diano immediately called an ambulance that brought most of the victims to a nearby hospital while the infant victims were brought to Cebu City.

Dianon said the truck was in good condition.

However, he said one of the passengers tinkered with the truck’s iron lock that caused the side panel to flip open causing the passengers to fall.

Dianon alleged that most of the passengers were drunk.

LUCKY

PO1 Randy Balensag, assistant investigator of the Badian town police, said the victims were lucky there was no vehicle traveling on the other side of the road.

Otherwise, it would have been more disastrous.

Balensag said Badian Mayor Rubart Librando helped in the hospitalization of the victims and made sure everyone was well attended.

As of yesterday, most of the victims of the accident were already out of the hospital.

Nobody filed a complaint yet against the driver.

Police said yesterday that Dianon would be released if nobody would file a complaint against Dianon after 36 hours of detention.

The truck with plate number SGC 844 was also not at the police station when Cebu Daily News visited the area yesterday.

Some municipal employees said it was brought to the shop for checkup.  Reporter Marian Z. Codilla