Saturday, October 11, 2008 Truckers, LGUs ink pact to save national highway By Chris Navarro
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO --- The Pampanga Truckers Association (PTA) and the local government units (LGUs) in the fourth district of the province have forged an agreement in a bid to save what is left of the dilapidated Manila North Road from San Simon to Apalit.
PTA officers led by Mike Tapang and mayors in the towns of Apalit, San Simon, Sto. Tomas, Minalin, Masantol, and San Luis met at the SM City Pampanga last Thursday and discussed the issue regarding overloaded trucks blamed to the destruction of the highway.
Tapang said they will support the campaign of the LGUs against overloaded trucks.
"We have agreed to the suggestions of the LGU and we will help them on the implementation of the anti-overloading law," he said.
According to Tapang, the PTA members will police their ranks by strictly monitoring quarry trucks before leaving the site where they are hauling sand and gravel.
"We are in one with the mayors calling for the strict implementation of the anti-overloading law. We are also businessmen and the deterioration of our national roads is also bad for our business since we are in the hauling services," said Tapang.
He added that an ordinance is now pending before the Provincial Board, which aims to provide sanctions and penalties for erring truckers and drivers.
He admitted that truckers ignore the anti-overloading law because of absence of the light penal clause in the law.
"It is not enough to simply fine an overloaded truck or confiscate the driver's license," said Tapanga. "If the ordinance is passed and implemented, our association can implement stiffer penalties to erring truckers by revoking their permit to operate or their affiliation from our association."
Mayor Rodrigo Canlas of San Simon town, for his part, said he has directed his chief of police to arrest the drivers of overloaded trucks plying the Manila North Road in their municipality.
Canlas admitted that some 40 trucks were able to pass through the checkpoint going to Apalit when police officers left the outpost.
Apalit town Mayor Jun Tetangco meanwhile said he has augmented the personnel of his monitoring team working against overloaded trucks passing along the eight-kilometer MNR from San Simon to Apalit.
The highway, he added, became an accident-prone area because of its bad state.
Also present during the meeting were Mayors Lito Naguit (Sto. Tomas), Edgar Flores (Minalin), Jayson Sagum (San Luis) and Peter Flores (Masantol).
