Senator Raffy Tulfo urged the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to require personal appearance for all those renewing their vehicle registration and to submit their valid government IDs.

Tulfo is set to file a bill to require owners to register their vehicles before LTO 10 days from the date of purchase. If the owner fails to comply, his vehicle shall be impounded immediately.

He notes that such regulation is not new as it is being practiced in different states in the US.

Tulfo also proposed adding an “anti-fixer” provision in his bill. It says that when a fixer is caught in an LTO unit, the director in said office will be immediately fired from the position on first offense.

He also called on all car owners who bought second-hand cars that are yet to be registered under their names to visit the nearest LTO office to have it transferred to the right name. This is for their safety and security as well.

“Marami nang natanggap na sumbong ang Raffy Tulfo in Action (RTIA) kung saan hirap ang mga awtoridad na tukuyin ang gumamit ng sasakyang sangkot sa krimen o aksidente dahil matagal na palang naibenta ito pero nakapangalan pa rin sa unang owner (RTIA has been a receiving a lot of complaints that authorities are having hard time identifying vehicles involved in crimes and accidents since the vehicles have already been sold but is still under the first owner),” said Tulfo, who chairs the Senate Committee on Public Services.

Tulfo cited as an example an RTIA case regarding a silver Mitsubishi Montero Sport with license plate PEO-987 that was used by suspected budol-budol gang members to victimize a cancer patient on June 10. Until now, its driver has not been identified because the car has been sold to different  people through an “open deed of sale".

“Common practice na kasi ngayon lalo na sa buy and sell, na bibili ng sasakyan ang isang tao at hindi muna ito nirerehistro dahil ibebenta niya rin ito, bukod pa diyan ay para makatipid siya (Buy and sell is currently a common practice wherein one person will buy a car and he or she will not register it since he or she would also sell it, on top of saving money),” Tulfo said.

“Sa ganitong practice, malakas ang loob ng mga driver na takbuhan ang kanilang responsibilidad sakaling may aksidenteng nangyari sa daan. Gayundin, nagagamit ng mga kawatan ang sasakyang binili para sa mga modus nila (Through this practice, drivers are confident to leave their responsibilities whenever there's accidents on the road. Also, the vehicles bought are being used in illegal activities),” he added.