Bill that seeks to prohibit texting while driving filed

MANILA, Philippines – The three representatives of Buhay party-list on Wednesday sought to prohibit drivers from sending text messages through their mobile phones while they are on the road. In her report at dzBB, Rowena Salvacion said Ma. Carissa Coscolluela, Irwin Tieng, and Rene Velarde filed House Bill 4917 which seeks to penalize drivers who are caught texting while driving. Under the bill, offenders will face a jail term of not more than six months and a fine of P100,000. The legislators said that the law will help prevent accidents caused by inattentiveness on the road. Exempted from HB 4917 are law enforcers, drivers of ambulances and rescue vehicles, and mediamen. According to the legislators, the law is already being implemented in 39 countries. In the Philippines, only the cities of Quezon and Makati employ an ordinance against texting while driving. The Land Transportation Office (LTO), for its part, said it will strongly support the proposed measure. In a radio interview, LTO chief Alberto Suansing said they will support the measure because of the numerous road accidents caused by using hand-held phones while on the road. "We are fully supporting the bill na hinain ni Congressman Tieng,” he said. At the same time, he stressed that the bill should ban not just texting but also making or receiving calls through cellular phones while driving. He said even the use of wireless gadgets, like headsets, is not an assurance of safety since it can still distract the driver. - Sophia Dedace and Aie Balagtas See, GMANews.TV