MMDA: Plate tampering for NCAP evasion punishable

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) warned Monday that motorists who tamper with their license plates to evade the No Contact Apprehension Policy (NCAP) will face charges.

This comes as the MMDA Special Operations Group Strike-Force has turned over documents, including images captured by CCTV cameras and reported on social media, to the Land Transportation Office (LTO) showing over 50 drivers who intentionally covered, concealed, or altered their vehicle license plates to avoid NCAP, also known as “Takip Plaka.”

“More than 50 drivers are possibly facing criminal charges for obscuring their license plates. Within a week of the NCAP’s implementation, 90 percent of those apprehended had their license plates veiled, and generally were motorcycles,” the MMDA said.

MMDA chairperson Atty. Don Artes has ordered field personnel to immediately physically apprehend and issue citation tickets to vehicles with concealed license plates, as the agency continuously monitors traffic via CCTV cameras at its Communication and Command Center.

Meantime, LTO executive director Greg Pua Jr. assured that show cause orders will be immediately sent to the traffic violators.

He warned motorists against fraudulently concealing their license plates to avoid NCAP apprehension, citing Republic Act 11235, the Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act.

Article II, Section 12 of the act states that purposely concealing a readable license plate is punishable by imprisonment ranging from six months and one day to two years, or a fine of not more than P10,000.

“No one escapes the law; the LTO will immediately send show cause orders against motorists who tampered with their vehicles’ license plates and will be penalized,” Pua said.

“Covering a license plate is already a traffic code violation. We will use all our resources to identify violators. This is also to ensure road and public safety,” he added.

The LTO is also coordinating with the Anti-Cybercrime Group and other law enforcement agencies to track down individuals promoting illegal tactics on social media and selling items intended to hide license plate details.

The LTO and MMDA are urging the public to report such infractions.

In a related development, lawyer Juman Paa has asked the Supreme Court to recall the partial lifting of the temporary restraining order (TRO) against the NCAP, citing concerns over due process and the right to privacy.

In his motion for reconsideration dated 29 May 2025, Paa argued that the resumption of the policy raises previous concerns about the “registered owner of vehicle rule,” where the burden of proof to be absolved from accountability for traffic violations rests on the registered owner. He also argued that processing the personal information of the registered owner when the actual driver is uncertain constitutes a breach of data privacy.

Paa also cited the MMDA’s alleged failure to submit necessary documents to prove its readiness to implement NCAP, such as a comprehensive memorandum of agreement with the LTO, data privacy agreements, and service contracts if a contractor operates the system.