The Land Transportation Office (LTO) is poised to impose sanctions on an unidentified foreigner who drives around Metro Manila in a stylish red Ferrari car that intruded into an exclusive bus lane on EDSA.
The alien reportedly failed to appear for the second time at the LTO’s Intelligence and Investigation Division (IID) in Quezon City to give his/her side of the story.
IID head Renan Melitante said they would recommend to LTO chief Teofilo Guadiz III to suspend the foreigner’s driver’s license for 90 days.
The Ferrari would also be placed under alarm, meaning the owner would not be able to renew the vehicle’s registration until the driver in question appears at the IID office to shed light on the alleged traffic rule violation.
The EDSA bus lane is for the exclusive use of public utility buses, ambulances and marked government vehicles being used for emergency purposes only.
Guadiz believes that the driver/owner was given due process to defend himself/herself, and that the LTO would resolve the case “based on the evidence at hand.”
“In the interest of justice and the LTO’s strict adherence to proper legal procedure. We have extended all possible leeway for the driver/owner to explain why the violation was committed. Since there was failure to do so, we have no recourse but to apply the law,” he said.
“Let this case also serve as an example that the LTO will not tolerate violations against traffic laws that were put in place for the safety of everyone, especially now that the country is still in a state of national health emergency. We hope that other drivers out there who may think of doing the same thing in the future will rethink their action,” Guadiz added.
