Traffic Group officials in Davao City on Wednesday announced its men would assist the Land Transportation Office (LTO) in enforcing the new anti-drunk driving law.
Traffic Group spokesperson P/Supt. Ernesto Castillo said they have started implementing the Republic Act (RA) 10586 or the Anti-Drunk and Drugged Driving Act of 2013 a few years ago.
Their records showed that they had apprehended seven violators last 2016 wherein one pleaded guilty in court and six others are still waiting for the court decision.
According to Castillo, violators of RA 10586 would be facing fines ranging from P20,000 to P80,000, three months imprisonment, and the license would be suspended for six months.
“The license would be perpetually revoked – meaning he or she cannot apply for a driver’s license here in the Philippines anymore – if the same driver would be caught for the second time,” Castillo said, adding that the violator would be fined from P100,000 to P500,000 depending on the violation committed under the Revised Penal Code.
Castillo also reminded the motorists to be wary of the law aimed at protecting the both the driver, passenger, and public’s life and other property from drunken drivers amid findings that almost 80 percent of road accidents may be attributed to human error or drunk driving.
“Driving while under the influence of alcohol not only carries a stiff jail term but would also break one’s pocket,” Castillo said, pointing out that the driver’s license of the drunken driver who figures in a deadly road accident will also be automatically revoked.
The police officials have also undergone seminars under the LTO have undergone on how to spot and apprehend a suspected drunk driver and that the officers have been taught the protocols and procedures in accosting suspected drivers and the proper way to conduct field sobriety tests.
“We will be requesting more breath analyzer this year to test on motorists alleged to be driving under the influence of alcohol,” Castillo said.
