LTO summons owner, driver of ill-fated jeepney

LTO summons owner, driver of ill-fated jeepney | Daily Tribune

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) has summoned the registered owner and the driver of a passenger jeepney involved in a fatal road accident here Sunday morning.

LTO chief Assistant Secretary Atty. Vigor D. Mendoza II said Monday that a show cause order had been issued to both the owner and the driver. The driver’s license has been preventively suspended for 90 days.

The registered owner is required to bring the passenger jeepney to the LTO Central Office in Quezon City for inspection and evaluation, along with its franchise documents.

“We want to have a clear picture of what happened so that appropriate sanctions would be imposed. We will also ask the drivers of the other motor vehicles involved for a statement as well as coordinate with the local police which is conducting a separate probe,” Mendoza said.

Initial investigation indicates the accident occurred around 6:30 a.m. when the passenger jeepney hit the rear left of a modern jeepney on Commonwealth Avenue near the corner of Kasunduan Street. This caused the passenger jeepney to overturn and subsequently hit the right side of a sedan.

The accident resulted in the deaths of two people and serious injuries to several other passengers.

The show cause order, signed by LTO Intelligence and Investigation Division chief Renante Melitante, requires the jeepney driver to explain why he should not be penalized for reckless driving and being an improper person to operate a motor vehicle.

It added that failure to respond will be considered a waiver of the right to be heard, and the case will be decided based on available evidence.

Following the incident, Department of Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon directed the LTO to intensify inspections of the roadworthiness of all motor vehicles, particularly public utility vehicles, as a preventive measure.

In anticipation of increased travel during Holy Week, Mendoza ordered all regional directors and law enforcement unit heads nationwide to further intensify random and surprise inspections of the roadworthiness of all PUVs.

The LTO had previously announced its Holy Week road safety plans, which include surprise inspections of passenger buses at terminals and random drug tests for drivers and conductors if necessary.

“We will also be coordinating with local government units and other law enforcement agencies for the deployment of our personnel for road assistance, traffic management and law enforcement,” Mendoza said.

He stressed that Dizon’s instruction is to ensure comfortable and safe Holy Week travel through preventive measures across land, sea and air transportation.

Mendoza added that the LTO has already deployed personnel for random and surprise roadworthiness checks along major thoroughfares.

“Many of our countrymen are responsible and know what to do when traveling long distances. However, we have stubborn countrymen whose motto is ‘bahala na’ and they are our target,” Mendoza said.

“We will be conducting interventions and preventive measures to compel these hardheaded motorists to behave and do their share in road safety because they might endanger other motorists and road users in case of road accidents,” he added.