(PNA file photo)
MANILA – Bicycle riders in Quezon City welcomes the suspension by the city government of an ordinance requiring a biker to wear a helmet or else be slapped with a fine.
Mayor Joy Belmonte said they will instead prioritize the distribution of free helmets.
“Salamat po sa pag unawa, hindi nman po ksi lahat nbibigyan ng helmet at hirap din po nkabili yung iba dahil sakto lang ang kinikita para sa pamilya (Thank you for understanding, not everyone were given a free helmet and there are also many who are not capable of buying one especially those whose salary is just enough for their families),” said Antonio Castro in his post on the QC government Facebook page.
The QC government in its post on Thursday said it will prioritize first the distribution of free bicycle helmets to bikers in the city before they finally implement the ordinance.
Ordinance No. SP-2942 requires bicycle riders traversing QC to use safety headgear.
“Ipinagpaliban ng Quezon City Government ang pagmumulta sa mga bikers na walang helmet sa lungsod mula October 15. Patuloy munang mamimigay ang QC Department of Public Order and Safety (DPOS) ng libreng bike helmets sa ating QCitizens. Ang pagpataw ng multa ay magsisimula sa October 31 (The QC government suspends the imposing of fines for bikers without a helmet on October 15. The QC Department of Public Order and Safety (DPOS) will continue distributing free helmets to our QCitizens. The imposing of fines will start on October 31),” the QC government post read.
Belmonte said this is part of the city government's assistance to those who do not have the means to buy themselves a helmet.
She added that the extra two weeks should be able to give riders an opportunity to comply with the ordinance.
“Salamat sa pagtatama. Pero sana bawasan o walain yung penalty. Ang lubos kc na tatamaan ay ang ordinaryong manggawa na siyang bumubuhay ng lugmok na ekonomiya (Thank you for the correction, but I wish that penalties be reduced most especially that most of those who will be affected are the ordinary laborers who keep the economy afloat,” Hua Qin said in his post.
The DPOS initially distributed 3,500 free safety helmets to bicycle riders.
DPOS head Elmo San Diego said the office again distributed 200 free helmets on Thursday. The distribution will continue for the next few days.
San Diego said instead of imposing fines, the DPOS will only issue warnings and conduct information dissemination first. (PNA)
