At A Glance
- Senator Grace Poe commended the Land Transportation Office (LTO) for issuing a show-cause order (SCO) to the registered owner and driver of a private vehicle seen in a viral video illegally transporting a dog in its open trunk.
Senator Grace Poe commended the Land Transportation Office (LTO) for issuing a show-cause order (SCO) to the registered owner and driver of a private vehicle seen in a viral video illegally transporting a dog in its open trunk.
"We commend the LTO for taking an active stance in working with animal welfare groups to investigate this recent animal cruelty case," she said.
"The spate of abuse and cruelty against animals is lamentable, and a whole-of-government approach is needed to put an end to this," she added.
A video uploaded on the Facebook page of Animal Kingdom Foundation showed a dog placed in an open trunk of a sedan that was traversing a public road.
In the SCO signed by LTO-Intelligence and Investigation Division chief Renante Melitante, the registered owner was asked to explain why they should not be held liable for road safety-related regulations over the incident.
The LTO said the owner or driver of the car may face a string of administrative cases, including reckless driving and improper person to operate a motor vehicle under sections 48 and 27 of Republic Act (RA) No. 4136 or the Land Transportation and Traffic Code.
The penalty for such violations is revocation of the driver’s license.
Poe expressed hope that concerned agencies and local government units, especially frontliners in the barangays, will remain vigilant in addressing violations of the Animal Welfare Act.
"We assure our people that we will be unrelenting in pushing for the passage of a stronger law to deter animal neglect and abuse," she added.