The Land Transportation Office (LTO) announced Sunday that it has issued separate show cause orders against two police officers caught on camera riding motorcycles without helmets.
This comes after photos circulated on social media showing the uniformed personnel openly defying the country's motorcycle safety laws in separate incidents.
In one instance, a uniformed police officer was photographed riding as a passenger on a motorcycle without a helmet.
The second incident involved another police officer operating a motorcycle on a public road without the mandatory protective headgear.
"The traffic law applies to everyone," LTO Chief Markus Lacanilao said. "Whether uniformed personnel, government employees, or ordinary citizens, we only have one standard when it comes to road safety."
Lacanilao stressed that there are no exemptions to the law, noting that protective helmets are legally mandated to safeguard the lives of both riders and their passengers.
Following the social media infractions, the LTO officially summoned the registered owners of the motorcycles and the identified riders to appear before the agency’s Intelligence and Investigation Division.
The officers face administrative charges, including the failure to wear standard protective motorcycle helmets and being an improper person to operate a motor vehicle.
As an initial penalty, the LTO has placed both motorcycle units under an alarm status and slapped the riders' driver's licenses with a 90-day preventive suspension.
The agency reiterated its warning to the public that it will continue to intensify the enforcement of existing road safety laws against any violator, regardless of their official status, to promote disciplined road use across the country.