Amnesty offered to trike drivers
THEY now have a second chance. Valenzuela Mayor Sherwin Gatchalian has issued an order which will grant a franchise to tricycle owners in the city who do not have one. Executive Order No. 89, Series of 2011, offers amnesty to bona fide members of groups composed of tricycle drivers and operators. Under the order, those who do not have transport franchises or whose franchises have expired have until July 27 to submit the required documents to the city’s Tricycle Regulatory Unit. Without a franchise, public vehicles are not allowed to ply routes in the city. Jay Valenzuela, officer in charge of the Valenzuela City Transport Office, said that those interested should bring a barangay (village) clearance and a photocopy of their driver’s license, among other requirements. He added that starting July 1, the Transport Office would begin going after drivers and operators whose tricycles do not have the required body color and body number. Violators will be fined P500, he said.—Kristine Felisse Mangunay
Spanish woman stabbed in hotel room
A SPANISH woman was stabbed several times inside her hotel room in Pasay City Thursday morning. Beatriz Pereiro, 30, sustained at least 10 stab wounds and was taken to San Juan de Dios Hospital where she remains confined in the intensive care unit. Initial investigation showed that Pereiro arrived in the country via Clark Airport. She checked in alone at GreenView Hotel on Tramo on Wednesday. A room boy, Jerryl Rosende, said he was in the lobby, when he heard a woman’s call for help. He then tracked it to Pereiro’s room on the third floor where she was found bloodied on the floor. Pasay City police chief Senior Superintendent Napoleon Cuaton said that there was no record of the victim receiving any visitors. There were no signs of forced entry in her room, either. He added that they would talk to Pereiro once her condition improves to see if she could provide any clues about her attacker.—Penelope P. Endozo