Complaint of Road Users Group 'utterly baseless' - Stradcom

MANILA, Philippines - Stradcom Corp. yesterday brushed aside as “utterly baseless” the complaint raised against it by the so-called Road Users Group, pertaining to its collection of interconnectivity fees as the information technology provider of the Land Transportation Office (LTO).

Stradcom spokesperson Margaux Salcedo pointed out that the interconnectivity fees are for operations that are beyond the scope of the primary contract entered into by the company with the LTO for the computerization of the processing of drivers’ licenses and motor vehicle registration.

“The operations covered by the interconnectivity fees were only added to Stradcom’s services upon the directive of the LTO and at a minimal cost to the public. The add-ons were designed to further increase the efficiency of the LTO,” she said.

She pointed out that Stradcom does not charge interconnectivity services from the public, but from the private offices requiring interconnectivity like insurance companies that are required to be connected to LTO. “It is the insurance companies that are billed, not the vehicle owners or the motoring public,” she said.

Salcedo stressed that the benefits of interconnectivity also far outweigh the costs.

The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) and the LTO itself required the LTO interconnectivity projects to address past problems, such as the proliferation of fake third-party liability insurance policies and bogus certificates of emission compliance, Salcedo said.

Through interconnectivity, Stradcom has successfully prevented the double or multiple sale of insurance policies by fixers as computerization allows instant cross-checking of insurance policies against registered vehicles, she added.

“Stradcom has done all of these even if it is a private and not a government corporation because of our commitment to the public, specifically to road users. In fact, recognizing this commitment, Stradcom has refused to increase its fees annually though it can do that under its contract. Stradcom had increased the fees only once in the past eight years,” she said.

Salcedo revealed that Stradcom has also been operating without payment since September 2010, a’ding that the company has been advancing operating costs if only to ensure continuous services to the public, in spite of LTO’s failure to pay.

“Stradcom welcomes any inspection of the company’s contract with LTO. Stradcom is very transparent. All of Stradcom’s operations are above board and within the parameters of our contracts, otherwise we would not get the government permits necessary to operate,” she added.