Mandaue cops may soon issue traffic violation tickets

CEBU, Philippines – Because erring drivers do not reportedly give due seriousness to citation tickets issued to them by traffic enforcers, the Mandaue City government now wants to tap the police in its campaign against traffic violations.

Mayor Jonas Cortes is planning to create a task force composed of the police and traffic enforcers who will go after traffic violators.

If the plan pushes through, selected police personnel can now also issue temporary operator's permit (TOP), a task previously given only to members of the Traffic Enforcement Agency of Mandaue.

Cortes said he is now coordinating with the Land Transportation Office to allow some of the city's policemen and traffic workers to be equipped again with citation tickets or TOPs.

The mayor said he has to do this after it was observed that erring drivers have not been threatened by citation tickets issued by the TEAM.

"Ang citation ticket, kataw-an lang," Cortes said.

LTO Mandaue chief Eugene Gador is now working with the regional office over the request to deputize some of the city's policemen and traffic enforcers to issue TOPs, Cortes said.

However, he said a policeman needs to apply before he can be deputized and allowed to issue citation tickets.

Last year, LTO recalled all the TOPs issued to traffic enforcers and policemen following the implementation of an administrative order which raised penalties against motorists who violate traffic laws.

This after the agency feared that the increase in penalties will lead some deputized agents to abuse TOPs or citation tickets.

It was learned that about 60 traffic enforcers in the city were affected by the TOPs' recall.

With the TOP, a traffic enforcer can confiscate the driver's license of an erring driver.

The license can only be given back to him once he is able to pay for penalties which range from P1,000 to P2,000.

Cortes said once the task force is created, a traffic enforcer must be accompanied by a cop who can issue the TOP.

Cortes foresees that it will then be easy for them to implement the new scheme as the city government will be purchasing more patrol cars.