Another open letter addressed to all Media and Government Agencies

To all Media, News and Government Agencies,

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jobert Christian G. Bolanos. I am the current chairman of a group called the Motorcycle Rights Organization and president of the Motorcycle Advocates of the Philippines. In the years that our community of motorcyclists have grown, the need for better and more regulations have been sought. This is fine except for the way it is being forced into the public. Allow me to be the first to admit that this growth caused so many problems on the streets in terms of accidents, crime and responsible driving/riding. And the way that motorcyclists are being painted is somewhat unfair for those who try to make themselves better road users. In spite this, I still come to you as we are being profiled unfairly.

Our group was somewhat responsible in going against the laws made by the LTO against motorcycles and it's riders back in 2008. AO AHS-2008-015 was suspended after we had raised our concerns on how the raw law promoted corruption and unfair apprehensions on the streets because of a very subjective basis in implementing the law. We came up with a document that was coursed through then Sec. Analie Lontoc from the DOTC which the LTO used as a basis to suspend the AO.

After this, we continued on fighting for motorcycle riders rights all over the country by providing legal advise to riders who felt that they were wrongly apprehended. From the then defunct loud pipe ordinance and operations in Makati, Laguna, Bulacan and other cities to the no-helmet ordinances in certain communities and the banning of motorcycles on some national roads and highways.

Recently, Pasig had released an ordinance stating that motor-vehicles without mufflers or working mufflers were to be apprehended. However, the law has taken a leap towards something else. The absence or presence of a muffler or working muffler is what the ordinance speaks about. In spite that, the enforcement of Pasig City has started apprehending motorcycles based on the sound and size of the tips of the mufflers instead. In all honesty, I do not mind that they start regulating the noise emitted by vehicles. In fact, I applaud this effort. However, the way it is being implemented is wrong. They have been apprehending based on sound and the opening of the mufflers without any standard and process in it's measurement to determine if it violates any regulation. Everything is basically done subjectively which is wrong. To make matters worse, they have been apprehending motorcycles only. And to rub salt in the already bleeding wound, they are targeting small underbones and scooters only. This is evident in the signage that they have posted everywhere.

Based on Philippine laws and procedures in creating an ordinance, they should be made to clearly explain the process in determining if a vehicle is in violation of a regulation. However, it is quite evident that Pasig City is not using anything of that matter at all. It is all up to the enforcer to decide on his own if one motorcycle is loud or not. But that is not the case here. The ordinance as stated, only speaks about the absence or presence of a muffler that can cause "unusual" sound. How is that unusual sound measured? What is used to measure it? What is the standard?

The implementation and the ordinance itself violates the very foundation that governs the country and it's law makers. First by being selective and discriminatory against small bikes. Second by being subjective in determining whether one violates the ordinance or not. And third by the way it is taken against the end user when it is publicly sold in the market. Other violations include the lack of an IRR to guide the implementation of the ordinance, the application of the ordinance on national roads and highways among others.

We have gone through several avenues in trying to ask Pasig City to have a dialogue with us so we can fix this issue and we have even offered to help them fix the ordinance by making it more comprehensive and with a proper standard that follows a process. Sad to say, that we have fallen unto deaf ears and the unjust apprehension continues on as we speak.

It has gone so bad that enforcers along C5 and Marcos Highway have been so overly aggressive in focusing on catching the riders that they put both riders and themselves at risk by jumping at them from the island, stopping them in the middle of moving traffic and sometimes even grabbing a rider which can cause them to crash.

To make treatment of motorcyclists much worse, Iloilo has recently announced that the use of full face helmets is to be banned in their region. Based on scientific studies and research, full face helmets offer the best protection for riders. Asking the riders to lessen that amount of protection is beyond us and preposterous to say the least. Just because they have issues in curbing the crime rate doesn't give them the right to sacrifice life and limb of the riding public. Again, they swore to protect us and not lead us into more danger. They tell us that we should comply with standards and protect ourselves and all of a sudden, they ask us to make such sacrifice because they cannot fix their problems. The same is being done in Cebu, Vigan and other provinces where they even ban helmets all together.

This has got to stop and the government needs to know that such shortcuts and wrongful apprehensions are only making the people mad and uneasy about their process or lack of it. And the only way we can get ourselves heard by anybody is to take it to media. We are also citizens of this country and we need the same amount of fair treatment and equal protection from the laws. We cannot stand by and watch as these shortcuts and lack of process take us down like criminals when we are not. We cannot be treated as such when it is because of their shortcomings that has not helped in addressing the rise of crime and accidents on the streets.

We need and we ask you to help us be heard. With all these issues coming out, it is evident that the need for somebody in the motorcycling community be part in the law making process so that we get a fair chance in representing ourselves. Just because they cannot fix the problems surrounding motorcyclists means that they have the right to fix what is wrong with another mistake.


Best regards,
Jobert Christian G. Bolanos

Motorcycle Rights Organization

Motorcycle Advocates of the Philippines

0921-775-4388      

www.bikerpinoy.blogspot.com