MANILA -- A lawmaker at the House of Representatives on Tuesday urged for the immediate passage of a bill seeking to institutionalize a mandatory re-education program for all drivers, to ease traffic and address traffic deaths.
In a news forum, Iloilo 3rd District Rep. Lorenz Defensor said House Bill No. 3196, which he filed last July 4, aims to effectively reduce traffic violations and eventually lessen road traffic deaths through the re-education of drivers on basic laws and road safety regulations.
“Driving involves lives, it involves safety, it involves public interest. Napakarami ang apektado sa attitude at disiplina ng may-hawak ng manibela sa daan. Ang pinag-uusapan natin dito ay buhay ng tao (Many on the road are affected by the attitude and discipline of the one behind the wheel. We are talking about people’s lives here),” Defensor said.
Citing data from the World Health Organization, the lawmaker noted that road traffic deaths continue to rise in the Philippines -- with an estimated 12,690 deaths in 2016, up 25.75 percent from the 10,012 deaths in 2015.
Traffic violations also continue to rise at an alarming rate.
In Metro Manila alone, the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) recorded 250,2019 apprehensions in 2016, a 19.95 percent rise from the 208,602 apprehensions in 2015.
“Human error has been tagged as the top cause of road crashes. In order to educate our drivers and instill road discipline among them, it is essential that we institutionalize a mandatory driver re-education program” Defensor said.
“It is about time that we do not only solve the traffic problem, but also address road traffic deaths,” he added.
Under HB 3196, all holders of driver’s licenses issued by the Land Transportation Office (LTO) shall undergo a one-day Mandatory Driver Re-education Program once every five years.
Renewal of a driver’s license shall not be processed unless the driver has successfully completed the program.
The modules of the program include road safety, basic LTO policies, road safety, road rage, anger management, and attitudinal driving; traffic signs and pavements; and other subject areas as the LTO may deem appropriate in instilling road discipline like driver alertness, defensive driving, speed awareness, change course and the like.
The LTO may charge a minimal fee for the conduct of the program to compensate administrative expenses for training materials, snacks, per diems of lecturers and facilitators, rental of venue and sound systems and other miscellaneous and incidental expenses.
Defensor, however, said he will push for the program to be conducted for free, especially for drivers of public utility vehicles.
He said this could be done by tapping the Road Users Tax for the purpose, or through other funding sources that could be tapped by the House Committee on Ways and Means.
If this could not be done, the lawmaker assured that the fee to be imposed would be “very minimal.”
“You may say that this may be an additional burden to drivers, but this burden will serve as an example to save lives, ease traffic and save properties from further damage. It is not only the responsibility of government, but it must be a unified effort from both the public and private sectors to address this problem,” he said.
“Magsisimula po sa disiplina at kaalaman natin ang pagbawas ng trapiko at aksidente sa daan (Addressing traffic and road accidents will start from one’s discipline and knowledge). Everything will start from our discipline and knowledge,” Defensor said. (PNA)
