Senator Richard J. Gordon on Friday decried the continuous rise in criminal incidents perpetrated by riding-in-tandem criminals, most of which remain unsolved.
Gordon, chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee, thus prodded anew the Land Transportation Office (LTO) and the Department of Transportation (DOTr) for the full implementation of Republic Act 11235, or the Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act, as he expressed fear that the unabated killings in the country is already making the people desensitized to the criminal act.
“Life has become cheap in this country. Paulit-ulit ang patayan, paulit-ulit nakikita ng tao at ang nangyayari ang kinakatakot ko, nasasanay na ang mga tao at parang nasagasaang aso lang ‘yung binaril, lalampasan na lang nila at sasabihin na lang nila ‘droga ‘yan (The killings continue, repeatedly seen by people and victims are like dogs hit by vehicles and shot. People just pass by, muttering that the victim is involved in the illegal drug trade),’’ he said during the continuation of the motu proprio investigation conducted by his committee on the continued delay in implementing the law.
“That is unacceptable to me. That is unacceptable to the Senate of the Philippines. That is unacceptable to every Filipino. Di natin dapat payagan na magkaroon tayo at dumikit sa ating mga buto at isipan na talagang ganyan (We will not let it pass that these acts of violence would cling to our bones and consciousness that that is a reality that we have to accept),” he said.
He added: “Ang nangyayari sa ating bansa ay hindi natin nakikita, hindi natin pinapansin (We do not see or care what is happening in our country). “
Grabe na talaga at talamak na masyado ang pagpatay ng mga tao. Habang nag-iimbestiga tayo, tumaas na naman ang patayan sa motorsiklo (The killings are widespread). I call the attention of all the DOTr people there,” Gordon added as he condemned the killings that continue to rise as the committee investigates.
Gordon, who is the law’s principal author and sponsor, said RA 11235 aims to take a bite out of crime, particularly those committed by criminals who use motorcycles as their get-away vehicles, by requiring bigger, color-coded and readable number plates for the back of motorcycles and decal plates for the front.
Among others, the law also provides for the establishment of a joint LTO-PNP (Philippine National Police) Operations and Command Center, equipped with a reliable data-base, the latest available technology and adequate computers and software sufficient to immediately address any emergencies or concerns related to crimes or offenses committed with the use of motorcycles.
Based on monitoring by Gordon’s office, shooting incidents by riding-in-tandems totaled to 69 from January 1 to February 17, of which 55 were killed and 12 were injured. Statistics from the PNP showed higher figures, with 114 incidents from January 1 to 31 alone.