Department of Transportation (DoTr) Secretary Vince Dizon on Friday accompanied the mother of a Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) member who, along with her husband, died in a fatal road crash in Tarlac on 1 May, as they filed a civil suit seeking P50 million in damages against Solid North Bus company before the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office.

Joining them was their lawyer, Rio Espiritu, whom Secretary Dizon commissioned to handle the civil liability case against the bus company. The transport chief said the move follows President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s directive to enforce road safety and ensure accountability.

“The DoTr is just helping by providing the lawyer and now filing this case for the family of Dain (PCG Seawoman Second Class Dain Janica Alinas) and her husband, who died in the multi-vehicle collision that killed 10 at the SCTEX toll gate on Labor Day,” Dizon told the DAILY TRIBUNE. “Personally, it’s painful for me — the family was heading up to Baguio for a vacation when the bus plowed into them,” he added, referring to the crash victims who were in a compact SUV and among the 10 casualties of the SCTEX accident in Tarlac.

Their two-year-old child survived the crash.

“This is to warn bus companies: If you have a franchise to earn from, you have the responsibility for the lives of your passengers and for those on the road,” Dizon emphasized.

Espiritu said the respondents named in the case are Teodoro Silvallana Merjan, Gerald Chua and Pangasinan Solid North Transit Inc. They are asking the court to order the defendants to pay P821,700 for actual damages covering funeral and burial expenses; P2 million as indemnity; and P43,176,756 as actual damages representing “the loss of earning capacity of the deceased victims.”

“Road crashes are preventable. They can be avoided. The President wants no one to evade full accountability. The reforms for road safety continue. Suspension is not enough. Solid North operates buses that have failed roadworthiness tests. The President ordered swift action last Monday,” Dizon stressed.

In a separate case, a suit seeking over P80 million in damages is also being filed in Antipolo, where Espiritu will represent the families of Seventh Day Adventist members who died in the same crash.

According to the Tarlac Provincial Police Office, the accident was caused by the bus failing to stop at the second lane of SCTEX’s exit toll plaza, resulting in a chain collision involving four other vehicles.

Police said the bus driver allegedly fell asleep while driving. The bus had departed from Cubao and was bound for Pangasinan when the tragic accident occurred.