Gordon presses resignation of LTO execs, staff behind delays in motorcycle law implementation
MANILA, Philippines — Senator Richard Gordon on Friday demanded the resignation of Land Transportation Office (LTO) officials and personnel responsible for hampering implementation of the motorcycle law.
Gordon condemned how the law that is supposed to prevent criminals from using motorcycles as a get-away vehicle is being delayed amid the high number of killings by so-called riding-in-tandem hitmen.
“Enough is enough. We can no longer tolerate the situation where nothing is happening except people are being killed without the protection of the law. If they cannot do that, then I demand the resignation of all the people of LTO na may kinalaman diyan,” said Gordon, chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee.
“Andaming dugo sa kamay ng mga tao sa LTO at mga dealer habang hindi niyo ginagawa ‘yan. The people of this country will not take it,” he added.
(There is a lot of blood in the hands of LTO as long as you don’t implement this. The people of this country will not take it.)
In January 2021 alone, there were already 20 people killed by riding-in-tandem gunmen.
“In the words of a famous man here in this country, p***** i**! Mahiya naman tayo. I’m just quoting. Galit na ang tao sa inyo dapat ayusin niyo. Ang dami nang pinapatay,” Gordon said.
“I am convinced, I’m going to tell you, LTO is incompetent, it has no compassion, it is negligent, wala kayong ginagawa, you have apathy, wala kayong pakialam kung may mangyari sa taong napatay. Wala kayong effort na bilisan ‘yung plaka,” he went on.
(I am convinced, I’m going to tell you, LTO is incompetent, it has no compassion, it is negligent, you are doing nothing, you have apathy, you don’t care if people get killed, you don’t have the effort to hasten the release of plate numbers.)
Passed in 2019, the Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act seeks to secure and safeguard the citizenry from crimes committed using motorcycles by imposing bigger, readable, and color-coded number plates to make it easier for eyewitnesses to identify the number plates of motorcycles used in crimes that they saw.
Data from the Philippine National Police showed that almost 37,000 crimes involving riding-in-tandem gunmen were recorded since 2010.
