PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the recent issuances on the use of protocol license plates, sirens and blinkers by those in government aim to promote discipline, prevent abuse, and improve transparency.
In an interview in Washington last Saturday, the President said that while the government is asking the public to be more disciplined on the road, especially in following traffic rules, it should do its share and even set the example of following the rules as well.
Marcos reiterated that driving is a privilege and not a right.
“If we’re going to ask the driving public to be disciplined, to follow the rules of the road, and to be considerate of the other drivers on the road… if we are going to ask ordinary citizens to do that, to keep that in mind, the very least we can do is have the government show a good example and then lead the way,” he said.
Last week, the President issued Executive Order 56 on the regulation of the low-number protocol license plates and Administrative Order 18 barring the use of sirens and blinkers unless the vehicles involved are responding to an emergency.
EO 56 reduced the low-numbered plates to 14 and removed protocol license plate numbers 12, 13 and 16 that were previously issued to cabinet undersecretaries, solicitor general, and regional trial court judges, respectively.
The solicitor general has been assigned the license plate number 10 along with the Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeals (CA), Court of Tax Appeals (CTA), and Sandiganbayan.
The protocol license plates are as follows: President-No. 1; Vice President, 2; Senate President, 3; Speaker, 4; Chief Justice, 5; Cabinet secretaries, 6; Senators, 7; Members of the House of Representatives, 8; Associate Justices of the Supreme Court, 9; 11 to the chairpersons of the Constitutional Commission and Ombudsman; and 14 to the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces and PNP chief.
The President also dismissed the idea that some of the policies of his administration were similar to those of the late president Benigno Simeon “Noynoy” Aquino III such as the focus on promoting the country’s economy, the Philippines’ closeness to the United States, and the “no wangwang (sirens)” policy.
Marcos said he cannot see similarities, adding that his traffic policies are not limited to the use of sirens and blinkers.
“This is not about the wangwang, that’s a very small part of it. What it really is, it is to impose discipline,” he said.
He added that everyone should follow traffic rules because no one wants to be stuck in traffic for several hours, losing precious time that can be used to be more productive.
Malacañang said the EO and AO were issued amid the growing public concern over the proliferation and unauthorized use of protocol plates and the use of blinkers and sirens.
