Secretary Jeremiah Belgica, Director General of the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA), said they will file charges against the division chief of the Land Transportation Office (LTO) Caloocan and the barangay officials in the area.
This after another fixer in the premises fell in an entrapment operation launched by ARTA and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) on Thursday.
It can be recalled that a fixer, who offered to process the student permit of an undercover agent, was also arrested in the same area on 30 June 2021.
“Kami po’y magsasampa ng kaso sa mga opisyales laban diyan sa loob ng LTO, pati rin po sa opisyales ng barangay dahil doon po sa kanilang area ito nangyari ulit,” he said.
“Sinabihan na po natin sila na magtulungan para linisin ‘yung lugar na ‘yan pero mukhang naglilipana pa rin diyan,” he added.
The fixer arrested on Thursday was identified as Val Cristiano Dela Peña, 40, resident of Caloocan City.
According to a report, an ARTA-CIDG undercover agent, who was posing as an applicant for a student permit, was approached by Dela Peña on 14 July 2021.
The fixer offered to process the agent’s student permit application in a day for a fee of P4,000. The amount is inclusive of a medical exam and the release of the theoretical driving certificate.
This process usually takes three days as applicants still have to undergo a three-day driving seminar before being issued a student permit.
The permit normally costs P317.63. Applicants can also get the TDC certificate for free if they attend the seminar at the LTO Driver Education Center, where topics such as traffic laws, rules, and regulations will be covered.
The two agreed to carry out the transaction at around 10 a.m. Dela Peña was later arrested by elements of ARTA-CIDG.
The arrested suspect is now under the custody of CIDG and will be facing charges for violation of Republic Act No. 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018.
Belgica reiterated his call for government agencies to not tolerate fixers loitering outside their offices.
“Nanawagan na kami sa mga ahensya na magtulong-tulong linisin, kayo na po ang mag-operate, huwag na hintayin ang ARTA,” he said.
He also said that the Authority will continue to intensify their anti-fixer operations.
The ARTA chief said they will coordinate with the Caloocan City government to establish outposts and deploy mobiles in fixer-prone areas.
(ARTA)-rir
