The Land Transportation Office (LTO) will conduct “one-time bigtime” joint operations against overloading and other traffic violations nationwide on Friday.
In a letter from LTO NCR–West Regional Director lawyer Clarence Guinto addressed to National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief, Maj. Gen. Debold Sinas, the LTO will conduct joint operations in all 17 regions of the country against traffic violators with emphasis on anti-overloading, tricycles on highways, over speeding, among others.
To effectively enforce the operations in Metro Manila, Guinto requested assistance from the office of the Metro Manila police chief.
“In this regard, may we request police assistance/augmentation from NCRPO for this One-time Big-time joint operation on November 22, 2019,” the letter read.
Other partners in the joint operations include the Philippine National Police Highway Patrol Group, Department of Public Works and Highways, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, North Luzon Expressway, South Luzon Expressway, and other law enforcement agencies.
The nationwide one-time bigtime operations, Guinto wrote, was in response to President Rodrigo Duterte’s instruction during a Cabinet meeting on Nov. 4 to strictly enforce traffic laws following multiple traffic accidents that resulted in numerous deaths due to overloading and other traffic infractions.
The incidents mentioned include the accident in Conner, Apayao province, which resulted in the death of 19 people on Oct. 31.
Based on a report, an Elf truck carrying 43 people from Rizal, Cagayan, and sacks of rice and corn seedlings had engine malfunction and resulted in its tragic fall into a 20-meter ravine.
Aside from those killed, the accident also injured 22 others.
Another incident mentioned was the road crash in Pamplona, Camarines Sur on Nov. 6 which resulted in the death of eight passengers of a UV express van following a head-on collision with a speeding bus.
Due to these incidents, Duterte, through the Secretary of the Interior and Local Government, also ordered all vehicular checkpoints to strictly monitor against overloaded vehicles during the joint operations on Friday. (Raymond Carl Dela Cruz/PNA)
