THE Davao City Police Office (DCPO) is tracking down individuals who have yet to settle their penalties after being issued with citation tickets for violation of the mandatory face mask rule.
DCPO Spokesperson Major Maria Teresita Gaspan said in a press conference on Wednesday, May 18 that there are still a significant number of violators who have not paid their fine.
"Daghan kaayo tag nadakpan. Og karon, medyo naglisud gani ta kay kadtong na-issuehan og citation, ubay-ubay ato for verification. Meaning to say, wala pa namayad sa administrative penalty (We caught a lot of violators. And now, we are having a hard time because most of those who received citations have yet to pay the administrative penalty)," Gaspan said.
Among the problems they encountered is that there are still violators who have not been charged, since their cases are still subject to verification. In addition, they can not locate their address.
She said violators are only given three days to process payment at the nearest district treasurer's office. However, most of them failed to pay, so they will be charged.
"Matingala na lang sila pagkuha nila og police clearance or NBI clearance naa sila'y makita didto na naa sila'y record. (They will just be surprised that when they apply for police or NBI clearance, the violations will be on their record). We urge everyone issued citations to pay the penalty)," the police official said.
The spokesperson said the city police is intensifying its coordination with barangay units to trace face mask ordinance violators, as it warned against failure to pay the administrative penalty.
Gaspan urged those who received citations to process the payment of their dues.
According to City Ordinance No. 0307-20, which prescribes the mandatory wearing of face masks in public, violators shall be penalized with a fine of P500 for the first offense; P2,000 for a second offense; and P5,000 or one-month imprisonment for the third offense.
According to the DCPO spokesperson, 10,941 individuals were apprehended for violating the city's face mask ordinance. The figure involved citations from January 1 to May 14, 2022.
Of the 10,941 violators, only 3,209 paid the P500 fine. A total of 7,732 individuals failed to pay the penalty and may soon be facing charges.
The DCPO has filed cases against 2,629 individuals who failed to take appropriate actions with their citation, while 5,103 are up for verification.
Outgoing Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio recently cautioned Dabawenyos about lifting the mandatory wearing of face masks even as the city continues to enjoy an Alert Level 1 status and low Covid-19 cases in the past two months, Mayor Sara Z. Duterte-Carpio cautioned Dabawenyos about lifting the mandatory wearing of face masks.
The mandatory wearing of face masks, according to her, is the first minimum public health standard that has been implemented since Covid-19 struck the country in early 2020.