Angelito Edpan, the driver of the SUV with "7" protocol plate which entered the EDSA Busway, apologizes for the incident on Nov. 3, 2024 wherein he allegedly tried to run over a lady enforcer at the EDSA Busway during a press briefing at LTO Central Office in Quezon City on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024.
The mystery on the ownership and the identity of the driver on the viral video of a sports utility vehicle (SU) that illegally entered the Edsa Busway and the subsequent rude behavior of its occupants was already solved, the Land Transportation Office (LTO) said on Wednesday, Nov. 6.
LTO chief, Assistant Secretary Vigor D. Mendoza said the white Cadillac Escalade is registered to the Orient Pacific Corporation and the name of the driver who tried to run over a lady enforcer as shown in the viral video is Angelito Edpan.
“Today, I would like to announce that the mystery behind the ownership and the people behind the controversial SUV with Number 7 protocol plate on EDSA Busway is already solved,” said Mendoza in a press briefing on Wednesday.
“We were contacted yesterday (Nov. 5) and they informed us that they will show up to take full responsibility for that unfortunate incident at the Guadalupe, Makati portion of the EDSA Busway,” he added.
The driver was present during the press briefing, along with the authorized representative of the company Omar Guinomia who apologized to the public over the incident.
Mendoza said the LTO immediately worked on identification of the registered owner as soon as the incident went viral after a video of it was posted on the Facebook page of the Department of Transportation-Special Action and Intelligence Committee for Transportation (SAICT).
The LTO initially faced difficulty in identifying the ownership of the SUV since both the license plates in front and at the back of the vehicle have number “7” protocol plate, a plate assigned to incumbent senators.
But as the LTO started to narrow down the existing white Cadillac Escalade in its system, a representative of the company called up and told the agency that it will take full responsibility for the incident.
What were you thinking?
During the press briefing, Edpan said he was called up to pick up someone from the company on Nov. 3.
He said he entered the busway as he thought that private vehicles could use it on a Sunday and he wanted to complete his job in the soonest possible time as he was not feeling well that time.
He said he is ready to face the consequences of his action, including the attempt to run over a female SAICT enforcer.
Questions remain
Although Edpan denied that he was the one who installed the protocol plate, the company representative did not answer the question on how a protocol plate ended up in one of their supposed company vehicles.
“We are conducting our own investigation and I don’t want to preempt the findings of the investigation so we would have to wait for that,” said Guinomia when asked about the protocol plate.
Aside from protocol plate, the driver did not give specific answers on the people inside the vehicle when the incident happened, especially that the SAICT revealed that one of the passengers of the Escalade gave a middle finger to the enforcers on their way to escape.
A link to a public official?
When asked to confirm if one of the directors is connected to a public official, the legal representative of the Orient Pacific Corporation, lawyer Ma. Julieta Santos would not disclose the names of the directors and stockholders of the company, citing privacy.
“As of the moment, we cannot confirm the names of the directors of the stockholders. we are not authorized to divulge their names due to their rights also, privacy,” said Santos.
But she said the names could be checked on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), adding that its records are public in nature.
Assurance
On Wednesday, Edpan surrendered his driver’s license to the LTO for the violations he committed. He also received a traffic violation ticket over the incident.
Mendoza said there would be more administrative charges on the driver as the investigation will continue.
“We will issue a show cause order and probably there could be more charges on the administrative side,” said Mendoza.
As to the rude passenger of the Escalade, Mendoza said: “On the administrative liability side, the passengers are not covered on this.”
Mendoza also disclosed that he already tasked the company to surrender the unauthorized protocol plates attached to the white Cadillac Escalade.
“I assure the Filipino people that appropriate sanctions will be meted out, regardless of who they are. The law is the law, let us implement it equally to all,” said Mendoza.