By Brian Jules Campued
Both motorists and the commuting public are enjoined to report vehicles that are still using sirens and blinkers in line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s “no wang-wang” policy, the Land Transportation Office (LTO) said.
In a press release Thursday, LTO chief Asec. Vigor Mendoza II said the public can report both government and private cars that are not authorized to use sirens and blinkers since “all of them are illegal”.
“Matagal na po tayong nagpa-plano na magkaroon ng isang reliable hotline ang inyong LTO bilang tugon sa direktiba ng ating DOTr (Department of Transportation) Secretary Jaime J. Bautista na lalo pang paigtingin ang road safety measures dahil nga sa mga nangyayaring road rage at kampanya na rin natin laban sa mga colorum vehicles,” Mendoza said.
Called the ‘Aksyon on the Spot’ hotline, the quick response mechanism also receives complaints regarding phishing scams by cybercriminals who impersonate the LTO and claim that the receiver has a traffic violation.
The text messages contain a link where the receiver is asked to send their payment in order to immediately settle the case, thereby exposing personal information about the victims once they click the link.
Mendoza said in an interview with Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon on Tuesday that the hotline was launched initially to cater complaints about erring government vehicles and enforcing the President’s directive.
“Pero nung nalaman po nating merong mga cyber messages, text messages na natatanggap ng ating publiko tungkol sa alleged mga violation, pagsisingil ng fines ng LTO… ginamit na rin natin itong hotline number for all kinds of complaints para mapalapit ang LTO sa ating mga kababayan na may concerns LTO,” he said.
The public may forward suspected phishing scams and complaints about erring motorists via the ‘Aksyon on the Spot’ hotline number: 0929 292 0865.
“Sa pamamagitan ng ating hotline, mabilis na matutugunan ng inyong LTO ang mga reklamo ng ating mga kababayan laban sa mga online scammers at mga pasaway na motorista,” Mendoza said.
He assured the public that any information gathered through the hotline would be confidential and protected under the Data Privacy Law.
Meanwhile, Aksyon on the Spot stickers carrying a QR code will also be distributed to motorists, particularly to those who renew their vehicle registration, he added.
The QR code will provide access to the public to formally lodge their complaints.
“We encourage the public to inform us of any abusive behaviors on the road at kami na po ang bahala sa aksyon,” he added.
However, Mendoza reminded the public that the LTO never sends text messages to motorists about their supposed traffic violations.
“Hindi po kami nagte-text ng random, dito lang po sa hotline number we are starting to text back, reply back…but other than that, hindi po kami naglalabas ng text messages especially traffic violations,” the LTO chief said. – avds
