Lawmaker blames LTO for Batasan accident

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) is to blame for the Batasan truck accident that claimed the lives of five persons on Thursday, Quezon City Rep. Winston Castelo said yesterday.

“The LTO appears to be a completely useless agency of the government. It might as well be abolished,” he said.

He said the LTO is empowered by law to check on the roadworthiness of motor vehicles before it registers them. That is why the agency has its so-called motor vehicle inspection system (MVIS), he said.

“What is the use of the MVIS if it cannot detect defects in vehicles – especially trucks and buses – before they are registered?” Castelo asked.

He lamented that MVIS personnel merely conduct “token” inspections of vehicles and do not really care about their roadworthiness.

“LTO has not made any effort to acquire instruments and technology or hire competent people to conduct proper vehicle inspection. ,” he said.

Castelo has filed a resolution seeking an inquiry into the series of road accidents involving trucks and other heavy vehicles so that Congress could craft appropriate laws on road safety and accident prevention.

He noted that in 2015 alone, 129 out of 779 fatal accidents in Metro Manila involved trucks, accounting for almost 20 percent of road crashes that resulted in deaths.

Trucks are the second leading cause of fatal accidents in the metropolis, next to motorcycles, he said.

He said in many cases, the drivers of trucks involved in these accidents were found lacking in proper training and did not qualify to drive heavy vehicles, yet they were given a professional driver’s license by LTO.

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board has cancelled the franchise of the company that owns the truck involved in the Batasan accident.

The board said it could not check on the truck’s roadworthiness, since that is within the jurisdiction of LTO.

The truck driver said he lost control of the vehicle after its brakes failed.