CCTO to motorists: Settle pending violations to avoid being sued, jailed

A Cebu City traffic enforcer apprehends a motorist for a violation. CDN Digital photo | Christian Dave Cuizon

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Cebu City Transportation Office (CCTO) advises motorists to immediately settle their pending violations within three days to avoid jail time.

This was announced by Jounald Bautista, CCTO assistant operations head, on August 15 over Sugboanon Channel.

According to the CCTO’s report, 1,789 traffic violators were sued last year, but only 894 settled their penalties after being summoned by the local court.

“Akong awhag sa atong mga kaigsuonang motorista nga ayaw ninyo huwata nga moabot sa korte ang inyong violation,” Bautista said.

Bautista added that the majority of those sued last year were drivers of public utility vehicles, including taxis, and both traditional and modernized jeepneys.

The motorists who were sued commonly violated rules such as ignoring traffic signs and signals; loading or unloading passengers outside of designated terminals; and loading or dropping off away from jeepney stops.

Meanwhile, from January to June this year, the CCTO sued 324 motorists, with 213 violators having already settled their penalties, Bautista said.

Corazon Yrog-irog, the acting head of CCTO’s Traffic Education Section, advised penalized motorists to immediately pay their fines to avoid paying more, according to the city’s Public Information Office.

“P1,000 raman ang fine kung ma-issuehan og citation ticket. Pero kung dili ninyo tagdon inyong violation ug moabot na siya sa korte, mas modako pa na ang inyong mabayran,” Yrog-irog said.

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Additionally, CCTO advised jeepney operators to regularly visit their office to check if any of their drivers or vehicles have received traffic violations.

“Mao na among gi-advise sa mga operators nga kinahanglan nga kung gusto ninyo inyong sakyanan clear, kada bulan moadto mo sa among opisina aron ma-monitor kung ang inyong driver tarung ba ug dili violator,” said Manuel Tagaan, CCTO’s sectoral pverall supervisor, who was also present during the Sugboanon interview.

Tagaan also advised jeepney operators to require their drivers to secure certification from CCTO, which verifies that their vehicle registration has no pending violations. /clorenciana