Guadiz may still be sacked from LTFRB if proven to be corrupt, says Bautista

MANILA, Philippines — Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Chairman Teofilo Guadiz III may still be removed from office.

The ouster will happen if he will be proven to have been involved in the alleged corruption within the board, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said on Monday.

According to Bautista, he has already instructed National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to expedite its independent probe into the issue.

“Siguro ganun mangyayari. Kaya nga hihintayin namin ‘yung result ng investigation ng NBI,” he said in a Radyo 360 interview.

(Maybe that will happen. That’s why we will wait for the result of the NBI investigation.)

He was responding to a question if Guadiz can still be dismissed, if the ongoing investigation will yield evidence he was involved in corruption.

“So, tatapusin din naman ‘yung imbestigasyon na ‘yan. Kung ano man ‘yung magiging resulta niyan, ‘yun ang magiging basis natin dun sa final decision,” Bautista said.

(So, that investigation will also be finished. Whatever the result is, that will be our basis for the final decision.)

Guadiz was suspended by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on October 9 following the corruption allegations made public by his former executive assistant, Jeffrey Tumbado.

Tumbado said the alleged “lagayan (bribery) scheme” not only happens within LTFRB, but in other government agencies as well.

However, he later recanted his statements, saying his remarks were “borne out of impulse, irrational thinking, poor decision-making, and misjudgment.”

Tumbado subsequently withdrew his recantation, once again implicating Guadiz in the allegations.

In a special order dated November 3 signed by Bautista, Guadiz was reinstated to his position as chairman of LTFRB effective November 6.