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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Tolentino joins call for LTO to release delayed licensed plates of motorcycle riders

Tolentino joins call for LTO to release delayed licensed plates of motorcycle riders

Published Dec 3, 2024 09:14 am

Senate Majority Leader Francis Tolentino joined on Tuesday, December 3, hundreds of motorcycle riders in their call for the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to release their long-delayed official license plates.

“With less than a month to go before the LTO bans the use of temporary license plates lapses, where are the official plates? Nasaan ang plaka? (Where are the plates?)” the senator asked, echoing the long-standing complaints of millions of riders nationwide, who have been forced to use temporary plates due to mounting delays in the LTO’s production and issuance of official plates.

On Tuesday, Tolentino stepped out of the Senate compound where hundreds of members of the Motorcycle Taxi Community Alliance (MTCA) were holding a protest action to call the chamber's attention to their plight.

“The deadline is unrealistic and unfair to riders, who will be arrested, fined, and banned from using their motorcycle beginning January 1, 2025. If the LTO cannot produce the official plates, then it should defer the deadline,” he stressed.

To recall, the LTO extended its previous deadline from September 1 to December 31 after Tolentino questioned LTO’s controversial memorandum no. VDM-2024-2721. The senator also called out the LTO regional office in Cebu for charging riders a P40 fee to secure a permit allowing them to extend the use of their temporary plates.

“In my inquiries, the LTO admitted that even with their plate manufacturing machines working at full capacity, the agency won't be able to meet its production backlog for license plates until July, 2025,” he noted.

“My appeal to the LTO is to give our riders a break. Allow them to make an honest living, especially as the holiday season approaches. Don't penalize them for a problem not of their own making, but was caused by the LTO’s own shortcomings and inefficiency,” the senator added.

Tolentino is the principal author of Senate Bill No. (SBN) 2555, which seeks to amend discriminatory provisions of Republic Act (RA) 11235, or the ‘Doble Plaka Law,’ against motorcycle riders. The Senate has passed the measure on third and final reading.

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Land Transportation Office (LTO) Senator Francis Tolentino Motorcycle rider
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