The dysfunctional breathalyzers procured by the Land Transportation Office (LTO) for P33.8 million were actually bought by the past two administrations, LTO Chief Asst. Sec. Vigor D. Mendoza II said on Friday, Aug. 23.
Mendoza said he ordered for the canvassing of shops for the repair and calibration of what remained from the 756 breathalyzers that were bought in 2015 and 2017 for the implementation of the Anti-Drunk and Drugged Driving Act of 2013.
A breathalyzer is a device used to measure breath alcohol content, and is commonly used by law enforcers during traffic stops.
“These breath analyzers were not bought under this administration. The first batch of 150 units were bought in 2015 for P10.2 million while the rest of the more than 600 units were bought in 2017 for more than P38,000 per unit,” he said.
“The total cost of these two procurements for a total of 756 units of breath analyzers were P33.8 million,” he added.
According to Mendoza, 215 units of breath analyzers were donated to the Philippine National Police (PNP) while 50 units were given to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).
The PNP and MMDA serve as partner-agencies of the LTO in implementing the Anti-Drunk and Drugged Driving Act of 2013.
Meanwhile, the rest of the units were distributed to the different regional offices of the LTO.
However, the PNP returned 50 units in 2020 and another 150 units in 2021 as they were deemed defective, and for the purpose of calibration.
A recent Senate investigation revealed the issue on defective breathalyzers procured by the LTO.
“The issue on the breathalyzers is one of the issues that I came across with when I inquired about why they are not being used. This was when I assumed the top post in July last year,” Mendoza said.
“But this was overtaken by more challenging issues, especially on the need to address the backlogs on license plates and the driver’s license, as well as the need to focus on the improvement of our digital platforms,” he added.
Supplier closed
During the conduct of the initial canvassing, Mendoza said that they found out that the company that supplied the more than 600 units of breath analyzers in 2017 closed shop a few months after the delivery, making it difficult now to tap it for the recalibration.
Mendoza, however, did not identify the supplier.
Mendoza said more than 500 units have already been damaged and irreparable, making them “no longer serviceable,” while only 200 units could be “saved and used again.”
“What we are doing now is to save more than 200 units by looking for the shop that could do the job,” he said.
But the LTO chief floated the possibility of buying new breath analyzers if their assessment would show that this is more cost effective than repairing the damaged units.