LTO revokes 106 driver's licenses, suspends 742

The Land Transportation Office-7 revoked 106 driver's licenses while another 742 licenses were also suspended for different violations committed by erring drivers since January.

LTO-7 operations chief Vicente Gador Jr. is now enforcing the provisions under the transportation and traffic code that requires the erring drivers to settle their fines within 15 days after their apprehension.

A total of 57,229 apprehensions of erring drivers were made by the LTO personnel and their deputized agents within the whole Central Visayas last year, lower compared to 58,375 apprehensions done in 2003.

Gador, whose father used to be the regional director of the LTO-7, has claimed that he already crippled the operations of fixers formerly present in their operations branch and believed to be in cahoots with some unscrupulous LTO personnel.

According to Gador, the fixers and the unscrupulous LTO personnel had victimized several drivers by just pocketing the money paid by the erring drivers in exchange for the release of their confiscated licenses.

"Many of the drivers just give money and don't ask for receipts just to get their licenses back. They don't realize they must settle their accounts," Gador explained.

The statistics of the LTO central office in Manila showed that obstructing the flow of traffic is the most common violation committed by the drivers, not only in Cebu but also in different parts of the country.

Other frequent violations of the erring drivers are the failure to carry the vehicle registration and official receipt, illegal parking, driving without wearing shoes and only wearing sleeveless shirts, driving with expired registration papers, reckless driving, driving without license and failure to wear seat belts.