SENATE Majority Leader Sen. Francis Tolentino said the plan of the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to apprehend motorcycle riders using improvised license plates was wrong since the agency is to blame for the matter due to its 12,548,909 backlog in registration plate production as of February this year.
LTO Region 7 (Central Visayas) Director Glen Galario said that all vehicles that would not comply with LTO Memorandum Circular VDM-2024-2721, which outlines the guidelines for using improvised and temporary motor vehicle/motorcycle plates nationwide, would face apprehension, legal action and penalties.
“Give motorcycle riders a break. They are not at fault for the lack of official license plates, which is the government’s responsibility,” Tolentino said in a radio interview in Cebu City.
The senator added he intends to write Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista to request an investigation on the cause of the production delay.
Tolentino said he would request the Transportation Department to hold in abeyance any similar directives given the recent passage of Senate Bill 2555, which mandates the removal of the double plate requirement for motorcycles under Republic Act 11235, also known as the Doble Plaka Law.
Tolentino is the principal sponsor of Senate Bill 2555.
“I question the logic behind apprehending motorcycle riders for not having official license plates when it is the LTO’s responsibility to provide them. I call upon LTO Region 7 to wait for the President’s signing of the new law. Our motorcycle riders are not at fault here, yet they are punished. And also, why single out Cebu?” he said.
Senate Majority Leader Sen. Francis Tolentino
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