ROXAS City – Not one official from any Land Transportation Office (LTO) district or satellite offices here and Capiz province showed up in the Jan. 29 meeting/public hearing called by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) of Capiz on the agency’s new private motor vehicle inspection system.
“Kay wala diri ang office concerned which is the LTO, istorya kuris-kuris lang kita diri tanan. Wala man sang may masabat sang aton mga pamangkot,” lamented SP member Thea Faith Reyes.
The SP would have wanted LTO to explain its new system for motor vehicle inspection.
Prior to registration or renewal of registration, all vehicles must first pass an inspection in accredited private motor vehicle inspection centers (PMVIC).
The SP recently passed a resolution urging LTO to defer the scheme’s implementation.
Resolution author SP member Enrique Martin warned many Capiznons would not be able to renew their vehicles’ registration, most especially the operators of public utility jeepneys.
“Daw ginpatay lang sini ang mga ahaw gagmay nga mga nagapasada,” said Martin. “Ang naluoyan ko ‘ya ang mga pigado.”
The inspection aims to ensure the roadworthiness of motor vehicles.
“Okay man ‘ni tani kay for safety. Pero tani panumdumon man nga safe man ini sa pockets sang mga tawo,” said Martin.
The inspection fee is nearly P2,000.
Under LTO’s new motor vehicle registration system, not less than 60 parts of the vehicle should pass the inspection test.
Should one part fail, it must be replaced or repaired, then re-inspected. Another inspection fee has to be paid for the second inspection – half of the amount paid for the first inspection – otherwise the vehicle won’t be able to proceed to registration.
For Roxas City and Capiz, LTO has only one accredited private motor vehicle inspection center, the Panay Motors Inc., also the first such center to operate in Panay Island.
SP member Jonathan Besa said this new scheme is ill-timed, citing the ongoing coronavirus disease pandemic.
“Kun may ara industriya nga grabe naapektohan sang pandemya, ini ang transport sector,” said Besa.
Public transport grounded to a halt at the height of lockdowns last year, economically displacing hundreds if not thousands of public transport drivers.
According to SP member Eleuper Martinez, the new scheme will adversely affect most especially the already economically hard-up operators and of ageing public utility vehicles (those at least five years old), and therefore an added burden in this time of coronavirus pandemic. (With a report from Capiz Kabalaka Information Center/PN)
