CLOA DISTRIBUTION. President Rodrigo Duterte delivers his speech during the distribution of Certificates of Land Ownership Award (CLOA) to agrarian reform beneficiaries in Cotabato City on Monday (Dec. 23, 2019). In his speech, the President said over-speeding, particularly of trucks, must be regulated, lamenting that it has been one of the country’s leading causes of deaths in road accidents. (Screenshot from RTVM)
MANILA -- President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday said he wanted to have over-speeding of trucks regulated by police, lamenting that it has been one of the country’s leading causes of deaths in road accidents.
“Pati 'yang mga truck, i-control ninyo ang speed. Alam mo ang disgrasya ngayon, pag ano ang patay, 10, 20 (The speed of trucks has to be controlled. You know accidents now, kill 10 to 20 people). I have to think about that. That has to stop,” Duterte said in a speech in Cotabato City.
Duterte said the number of deaths due to road accidents was “no longer acceptable” to him.
“Itong over-speeding, it has to be controlled kasi marami nang patay (This over-speeding has to be controlled because there are so many deaths),” he added.
Duterte compared deaths caused by over-speeding to a “massacre” that took place almost every day.
“Ang numbers ng patay (of deaths) ... No longer, hindi na nakakatuwa, hindi na maganda basahin. Parang massacre na almost every day (The number of deaths is no longer a laughing matter. It’s not a good thing to read about. It is like a massacre almost every day),” he added.
Earlier this month, nine persons died while five others were injured when a truck hit a dump truck and a jeepney in Cardona, Rizal.
In 2013, when he was Davao City Mayor, Duterte issued Executive Order No. 39, which “orders setting the speed limit for all kinds of motor vehicles within the territorial jurisdiction of Davao City”.
Section 4 of the said order states that “violators shall, if warranted, be subjected to arrest and their vehicle impounded without prejudice to the imposition of penalties and fines under the provisions of R.A. No.4136 and Davao City Ordinance No. 778, if applicable”.
Duterte’s two children, Davao City Mayor Sara and former Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo have previously been apprehended for over-speeding in 2014 and 2016, respectively.
The Global status report on road safety 2018, launched by World Health Organization (WHO) in December 2018, showed that the number of annual road traffic deaths has reached 1.35 million.
Road traffic injuries are now the leading killers of people aged 5-29 years, the report said.
The burden is disproportionately borne by pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists, in particular those living in developing countries, it added.
It also noted that drastic action is needed to put these measures in place to meet any future global target that might be set and save lives.
Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that 10,012 people died due to road crashes in 2015, a 45.76 percent increase from 6,869 deaths recorded in 2006. (PNA)
