Palace to LTO: Refund motorists who purchased RFID stickers

With the controversial Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) program pending before the Supreme Court, Malacañang on Thursday advised the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to refund motorists who already purchased their vehicle tags. Cabinet Secretary Silvestre Bello III said such move is the "prudent and safe" action, adding that P350 worth of the microchip tag is a big deal for many motorists. “Kung ang tingin ng LTO maliit lang ang (binayaran) ng mga driver at mahirap na kababayan, eh, malaking bagay yan; isang linggong pagkain na yan. Habang di pa na-resolve ng Korte Suprema with finality, mas mabuti ibalik muna (The LTO may think the P350 is a small amount. But to drivers and poor motorists, it is a big amount. It may even mean one week’s worth of food. So while the High Court has not yet resolved the matter with finality, it would be better to give back to drivers their money)," Bello said in an interview on dzXL radio. The LTO began collecting the RFID fee from motorists last January 4, even as it admitted that the program would only be operational starting October this year. Militant groups and petitioners Bayan Muna, Gabriela, Anakpawis, and Pinagkaisang Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston) claimed the program violates the provisions of Republic Act 9184 or the Government Procurement Act, because there was no competitive public bidding for suppliers of the stickers for the RFID. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court temporarily stopped the government from implementing the RFID program, even as it asked the respondents (the Land Transportation Office, the Department of Transportation and Communications and private contractor Stradcom Corp.) to submit their comments within 10 days. However, Supreme Court spokesperson Jose Midas Marquez said it would be up to the LTO to reimburse motorists who have paid for their RFID stickers. As of this posting, the LTO could not be immediately reached for comments on the issue. - Nikka Corsino/LBG/RSJ, GMANews.TV