THOSE who want to secure their driver’s license at the Land Transportation Office (LTO) may soon have the option to take the exam in Cebuano.
Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur Tugade issued a department order to LTO to make the driver’s licensure exam available in English, Tagalog or the language common to the region.
The order is expected to take effect on Sunday, March 1, 2020.
In his Department Order 2020-003 issued on Feb. 14, Tugade directed the LTO to “conduct driver’s license examinations in English, or other regional language at the option of the examinee.” The directive complies with Article 14, Section 7 of the 1987 Constitution, which provides that “for purposes of communication and instruction, the official languages of the Philippines are Filipino and, until otherwise provided by law, English. The regional languages are the auxiliary official languages in the regions and shall serve as auxiliary media of instruction therein.”
“In the interest of justice and for the effective enforcement of land transportation laws, the DOTr recognizes the need to afford examinees the opportunity to fully comprehend the Driver’s License Examination,” Tugade said in his order.
Directors of LTO’s regional offices have 30 days or a month to provide a translation of the exam in their respective regional languages from the effectivity of the order.
“The driver’s license examination will be easily understood by those who will take it if it is in the regional language,” LTO 7 Director Victor Caindec said in Cebuano. / HBL / JKV