1-Rider rep: Mandatory drug testing of PUV drivers discriminatory

Requiring the regular and mandatory drug testing of PUV drivers is discriminatory, 1-Rider Partylist Representative Bonifacio Bosita said Wednesday.

“PUV drivers lang ba ang puwedeng gumamit ng illegal drugs? Paano yung mga private car owners? Maaaring gumagamit din sila,” Bosita said.

(Are PUV drivers the only ones who use illegal drugs? What about private car owners? Maybe they use drugs too.)

The Department of Transportation announced the requirement on Monday in the wake of road accidents that have killed several people.

The Palace later defended the rule, saying that it's needed.

Among the deadly road crashes in recent days was a multi-vehicle collision on SCTEX caused by a bus, killing at least 10 people. Another was when an SUV—not a public utility vehicle—plowed through the bollards at NAIA, killing two people including a four-year-old girl.

Both drivers were later tested for alcohol and drugs, with negative results.

Bosita, on the other hand, agrees with the DOTr’s directive to shorten the driving hours of public utility drivers, though he did not specify how many hours PUV drivers should be allowed to work.

But he stressed that enforcement should be done strictly.

NAIA driver's license, bollards

Bosita also called for an investigation into how the driver involved in the NAIA crash was issued a driver’s license.

“Kapag talagang ikaw ay driver, hindi dapat mangyari yan eh. So ang tinitingnan ko po diyan, balikan natin, paano ba nagka-lisensiya itong tao na ito?" he told reporters in a phone interview.

(If you're a driver, that shouldn't happen. So what I'm thinking about it is, let's go back: how was this person able to get a driver's license?)

According to the Land Transportation Office, the driver said he panicked when he saw another vehicle pass in front of him. Video footage shows, however, that there was no such vehicle at the time of the crash.

Bosita said talk about corruption in obtaining licenses has been around for a long time. 

"Meron po tayong nadidinig na mahirap naman natin sabihin hindi totoo dahil pagdating sa corruption, talagang laganap sa ating bansa. May nadidinig po tayo na kapag may pera ka, yung seminar or training, pwede mong bayaran,” Bosita told reporters in a phone interview.

“Dapat imbestigahan paano nagkalisensiya. Baka ito naman non-appearance, wala talagang training or seminar,” he added.

(It's hard to say it's not true because corruption is really prevalent in this country. We have heard that in this country, you can just pay instead of attending the seminar or training. It must be investigated how he got the license. Maybe this is another case of non-appearance, without training or seminar.")

The investigation has so far not said anything about how the motorist in the NAIA crash obtained his license.

Bosita, who is a civil engineer, also noted lapses in the installation of bollards at NAIA.

“Parang nakita ko po yung nag-design, baka sabihin na nating patulog-tulog, akala yata siguro niya decoration lang yun, ano po? Samantalang kung na-design po nang tama yun, na hindi naka-bolt lang na ganoon at dapat sana ito ay nakalubog at least one half meter tapos nakasemento. So kung mangyari po yung ganoong insidente, hindi makakalampas yung nasabing sasakyan doon sa area wherein nandoon po yung mga tao. So technically, bilang engineer, mali po talaga ang design,” Bosita said.

(I think whoever designed it was asleep, they probably thought the bollards were for decoration? If they had been designed properly, they would not just be bolted to the ground but sunk atl lease one-half meter and cemented. So if an accident like that happened. the vehicle would not have been able to get into the area where the people were. So technically, as an engineer, I think the design was wrong.)

No to Solid North suspension

On the SCTEX crash, Bosita also disagreed with the preventive suspension imposed by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on all units of the Solid North Transit.

“Hindi tama yon. Dahil nga, imagine po, nagkamali si Juan, may buong company sa-sacrifice na. Pati yung janitor, lahat ng personnel. Siyempre walang kita. Kung may preventive suspension sila, walang operation, ma-sacrifice lahat,” Bosita said.

(That's not right. Imagine if Juan made a mistake, the entire company is sacrificed, including the janitors, all the personnel. They won't have an income. If there's a preventive suspension on them, there won't be any operations, everyone is sacrificed.) — BM, GMA Integrated News