SEN. JV Ejercito on Tuesday urged the Department of Justice and the Philippine National Police to help Congress pass a law that would end unfair detention of innocent drivers involved in road accidents.
The Senate on Tuesday deliberated on Senate Bill 1976, which aims to prevent traffic enforcers from abusing their authority.
The measure seeks to provide compensation to motorists who were wrongly apprehended. It also aims to promote transparency and accountability in the country’s traffic enforcement system.
Sen. Raffy Tulfo, chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Services and author of Senate Bill 1976, led the discussion on the problems motorists encounter with abusive traffic officers.
“In today’s hearing, we will discuss a problem that is usually being encountered by motorists when they are apprehended for a supposed traffic violation, and we have people from traffic management offices to enlighten us on the proper procedures in apprehending a traffic violator,” Tulfo said.
Ejercito cited a case wherein an intoxicated rider slammed his motorcycle onto a properly parked delivery truck and died. The truck driver, even though he was not responsible for the drunk rider’s death, was jailed immediately.
“So this is a good thing to discuss because it is also unfair. We need to prevent detention of motorists that are not responsible [for the accident], especially if there is CCTV (closed-circuit television) or enough evidence that will prove their innocence,” he said. BERNADETTE E. TAMAYO
Be the first to comment