Duterte: Driver’s license validity extended, backlog cleared

President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday touted the extension of the validity of driver’s licenses to 10 years and the clearance of millions in backlogs.

In his final State of the Nation Address, Duterte said the government went beyond clearing the three-million backlog of driver’s licenses in 2016 by extending the validity of the license to 10 years “if there is no traffic violation.”

Last year, the Land Transportation Office announced that it would roll out driver’s licenses valid for 10 years by October 2021.

While Duterte welcomed the extension, he also floated the idea of making drivers undergo a medical assessment every five years to ensure that they still have good eyesight and hearing.

“Ten years is too long. I like it, it’s good, but we should [have an] assessment in five years. You should go there for a medical makeover, tingnan lang kung kaya pa (see if you’re still capable of driving),” he said.

Duterte also said government transactions would be streamlined with the rollout of the Philippine Identification System or national ID.

“With this, we hope to facilitate better access, better services, and access for all Filipinos, even in the far-flung areas,” he said.

No more lines?

Meanwhile, Duterte claimed that the government has made long queues “a thing of the past” by streamlining government processes through the Ease of Doing Business Act.

Duterte recalled seeing people camping outside a mall in Davao City, while he was still its mayor, just to be first in line for the issuance of passports.

“Ngayon, pagka presidente ko, sabi ko, ayaw ko nang makita ‘yan. Not during my time. Maghanap ka ng ibang panahon. Ayusin niyo ‘yan. I do not want people queuing under the heat of the sun and rain,” he said.

(Now, when I became president, I said I don’t want to see that. Not during my time. Find some other time to do that. Fix it. I do not want people queuing under the heat of the sun and rain.)

“Today, there is no more queueing, especially in the National Statistics Office, nakita ko. Talagang sabi ko na (I said) either you fix the thing or I will resign tomorrow because I could not bear to see those,” he added.

Over the weekend, Duterte told local authorities not to make people wait too long in line to get a COVID-19 vaccination.  — DVM, GMA News