Belmonte, Tiangco on child car seat law: Public consultation, research first before implementation

Two Metro Manila mayors on Wednesday raised concerns over the law requiring children aged 12 and below to be seated on car seats.

At the Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum, Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte pointed out that regulations should not be implemented without initially conducting public consultations.

Belmonte also said some laws being enforced in other countries cannot be implemented in the Philippines.

"I think that in relation to the furor it raised, maybe the LTO (Land Transportation Office) should not implement first until such time that the people have been heard, pertaining to whether it's implementable or not," Belmonte said.

"Because you know, you can have the most brilliant laws because I think the child seat law is common in developed countries but the issue is if it's implementable in your context so siguro kailangan munang siguraduhin na that can be implemented," she added.

The requirement, as part of the full implementation of the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act, was also criticized by netizens over social media.

Navotas City Mayor Toby Tiangco, for his part, said thorough research must be done when it comes to implementing laws, especially if the Philippines is trying to adapt the rules being enforced abroad.

"Dapat mag-research munang mabuti kung papaanong ginagawa sa ibang bansa," Tiangco said.

"I think it is only five or seven-years-old and the height is definitely not 4'11, I'm sure it's not 4'11. Unang-una saan naman hahanap ng car seat na kakasya 'yung 4'11 so sa tingin ko may mali doon sa ano..." he added.

Signed by President Rodrigo Duterte in February last year, the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act mandates that children aged 12 and below use the child restraint systems (CRS) or car seats and are only allowed to take the front seat if they meet the 4'11' height requirement, on top of using the regular seat belt.

The LTO earlier said it would focus on the intensified information drive about the full implementation of the law rather than apprehending or issuing tickets against its violators. — RSJ, GMA News