PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has signed a law amending the “Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act,” which reduced the fine for certain violations and aims to improve compliance while promoting responsible motorcycle ownership.
The President, in signing Republic Act 12209 into law last May 9, amended several provisions of RA No 11235, such as requiring the new motorcycle owners to register their motorcycles with the Land Transportation Office (LTO) within five days of acquiring ownership, and the transfer of motorcycle ownership from old owners to new owners within 20 working days.
Under the new law, the LTO is now required to issue a “bigger, readable, and color-coded number plate for every motorcycle” to ensure that it is readable at a distance of at least 15 meters from the motorcycle, and requires displaying the number plate at the back of the motorcycle.
The new law also states that driving without a number plate or a readable number plate is prohibited and punished with a fine of not more than P5,000, down from the previous P50,000 to P100,000 fine.
In case the number plate was lost, damaged, or stolen, the owner shall report it to the LTO and PNP within 72 hours from discovery, and request a replacement, as failure to do so will subject the owner to a fine of not more than P5,000. The previous fine was not less than P20,000 but not more than P50,000.
In case the lost, damaged, or stolen number plate or readable number plate is used in connection with an offense that penalized under the Revised Penal Code or special penal laws, “the failure of the owner to report within three days that the motorcycle is lost, damaged, or stolen, shall subject the owner to a fine of not more than Ten thousand pesos (P10,000.00).” Previously, the failure of the owner to report within three days the lost, damaged, or stolen number plate shall subject the owner to a penalty of imprisonment of arresto mayor (one month or six months) to prision correccional (six months to six years).
The new law also states that erasing, tampering, altering, forging, imitating, covering, or concealing a number plate or intentionally using tampered number plate shall be punished with imprisonment ranging from six months and one day to two years, or a fine of not more than P10,000 or both which was reduced from the previous P50,000 to P100,000 fine.
The law also stated that the use of a stolen number plate shall be punished with a fine of not more than P20,000, down from P50,000 to P100,000.
“Motorcycle owners with number plates not in conformity with the provisions of this Act shall renew their registration and apply for the required readable number plate not later than December 31, 2025. The LTO is given until June 30, 2026 to produce, release, and issue the number plates as required by this Act,” the law said.
OTHER LAWS SIGNED
The President signed last May 8 RA 12199 into law or the Early Childhood Care and Development System (ECCD System) which seeks to safeguard and promote the right of every child to holistic well-being, growth, and dedicated care; and recognize age-appropriate stages of development by creating nurturing environments for children aged zero to eight.
It also seeks to professionalize the child care teachers (CDTs) and workers (CDWs) by imposing minimum qualifications, training, assessment, and certification requirements; ensuring the availability of training programs and developing scholarship programs; and increasing their salary grades. CDTs and CDWs, which are non-permanent positions, receive an average salary of around P5,000 monthly.
RA 12199 also repealed RA No. 10410, otherwise known as the “Early Years Act (EYA) of 2013.”
Marcos also signed into law RA 12202 and 12201 that grants citizenship to Indian priest Father Job Callarackal Oommen who has been in the country for the past 42 years, and Grace Tan To – a Taiwanese born in the Philippines and served as principal and school director of the Oro Christian Grace School in Cagayan de Oro- respectively.
The President also enacted RA 12200, which declared November 12 of every year as a special non-working holiday in Valenzuela in commemoration of its foundation anniversary.
He also signed three measures into law that establishes national high schools in barangays Latuan, Curuan and Licomo, all in Zamboanga City; and seven bills that create general hospitals or increased the bed capacity of public hospitals in Marikina City, Dagupan City in Pangasinan, Calamba City and San Pedro in Laguna, Marawi City in Lanao del Sur, Ramon Magsaysay in Zamboanga del Sur.
