Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III called out the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) during its budget deliberation, urging the agency to address the abuse of government convoys while ordinary citizens face worsening traffic congestion.
Speaking to the Police Security and Protection Group (PSPG) under the Philippine National Police (PNP), Sotto recommended that personnel handling convoys undergo proper training to ensure road courtesy.
‘May we request that you make them undergo regular lectures, reminders, workshops to be more polite and with proper decorum, [be] respectful,’ he said.
He added that some convoy personnel tend to aggressively clear roads, which irritates motorists. ‘Pero ‘yung mga kababayan natin, maraming naiinis, na tinatabig sila, tinatabi sila,’ he noted.
Senator JV Ejercito, sponsor of the DILG budget, responded that the agency has already taken steps to curb the issue. ‘The PNP said that they have already cut down the convoys with escorts to nine officials,’ he said. ‘Dati po kasi marami talaga.’
The nine officials entitled to special plates and convoys include the President, Vice President, Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and others.
Ejercito also pointed out that Sotto himself does not use a convoy. ‘I share the same, nabibiktima rin tayo, the Senate President, the number three most powerful person in the land, walang escort, walang driver. [The Senate President] drives [his] own car, sana naman mahiya naman ‘yung iba. That’s worth emulating,’ he said. /dm