President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has appointed Markus Lacanilao as the new chair of the Land Transportation Office (LTO), replacing Vigor Mendoza in a reshuffle that affected two other transportation agencies.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro confirmed the appointments on Friday, October 10, saying Mendoza will now be the chair of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, replacing Teofilo Guadiz III.
Guadiz, meanwhile, has been designated chair of the Office of Transport Coop.
Role in Duterte’s handover. Prior to his appointment as new LTO chief, Lacanilao was the government’s special envoy on transnational crime. He was among the officials who accompanied former president Rodrigo Duterte to the Hague, Netherlands, when Duterte was handed over to the International Criminal Court to face charges of crimes against humanity.
Lacanilao was questioned in the Senate over his role in the handover, and was briefly detained during the hearings.
Leadership shuffle
The reshuffle comes amid mounting pressure from Magnificent 7 transport groups for faster implementation of the Public Transport Modernization Program (PTMP). They called for Guadiz’s resignation over the delays as LTFRB chair. Other members of the Magnificent 7, however, did not back the calls for his dismissal.
The Palace has yet to explain the reason behind the shakeup in three transportation agencies.
The modernization, which was first introduced during the Duterte administration, aims to replace traditional jeepneys for modern, environmentally compliant models.While the plan has been widely supported in its main goals, many operators and drivers have lamented the lack of aid during the transition to the newer, pricier models in what is supposed to be an improvement in public transportation.
Officials have repeatedly assured that the modernization program will proceed gradually to prevent disruption of public transport services.