LTO exec fears delayed issuance of driver’s license cards

MANILA, Philippines - The issuance of driver’s license cards to motorists might be delayed.

This is the fear of Land Transportation Office (LTO) spokesman Jason Salvador after the Manila Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 49 ordered a stop to the P336-million driver’s license card deal with Allcard Plastics Philippines Inc.

The initial supply of driver’s license card from Allcard will last until December, he told reporters.

“If the supplier thinks that they won’t be getting any payment soon, they might stop supplying us with the cards,” he said.

“And that will really hamper our operations, but we have deliveries, we have enough supply until I think December.” 

The company has initially supplied “almost half or more than half” of the five  million driver’s licenses in the LTO inventory, he added.  

However, Salvador is optimistic that the LTO will be able to resolve the issue before they run out of driver’s license cards.

Last Oct. 1, Judge Daniel Villanueva of Manila RTC Branch 49 issued a writ of preliminary injunction against the driver’s license deal.

“The court is of the view that, foremost of all, there appears to be no approved budget for the project denominated by the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) as procurement of LTO driver’s license card involving the amount of approximately P450 million for the production of five million driver’s license cards, ” read the order.

Director Alfonso Tan Jr. said the court stopped the deal after finding out that the LTO has been procuring printers and other paraphernalia for the printing of driver’s license cards without a budget for the equipment.  

However, they are not paying for the printers and other equipment since “at the end of the contract” the equipment would be donated to the government, he added.

The LTO is paying P68 for every driver’s license  card or P82 cheaper than their previous supplier,  Amalgamated Motors Philippines Inc. (AMPI), Tan said.

The AMPI was LTO’s supplier of driver’s license cards for almost 20 years.

However, the court said the General Appropriations Act of 2014 allocated P814,424,000 for the project.

 “It is clear and undisputed that said amount was for the so-called Maintenance Operating and other Expenses (MOOE),” the court said.

 “Even a rational reading and understanding of the said phrase and item, immediately suggests that it was not appropriated for the acquisition of capital equipment. There was a separate category in the General Appropriations Act, under the heading ‘Capital Outlay,’ for the purchase and acquisition of capital equipment.” 

The court said the statement of LTO Finance Office chief Irenea Nueva also shows the LTO main office has only a capital outlay of P2.5 million or less for  the national expenditures program for 2015, the period of implementation of the driver’s license card project.