‘LTO online portal not up for abolition’

MANILA, Philippines — The Land Transportation Office (LTO) has clarified that it is not abolishing its online portal reportedly used by fixers in renewing drivers’ licenses.

In a statement on Saturday, LTO Strategic Communications Office chief Divine Reyes said they want to “strengthen the level of protection in online transactions” through the Land Transportation Management System (LTMS), which bogged down due to glitches recently.

The office sought to clarify reports attributed to LTO chief Teofilo Guadiz III that he wanted the LTMS abolished because of abusive fixers using it to apply for drivers’ licenses of their clients.

Guadiz reportedly told the Senate budget deliberations on Friday that he would move to abolish the portal, where motorists can apply for a driver’s license and register their vehicles online.

Reyes clarified that Guadiz was referring to “abolishing or strengthening” the conduct of the online validation exam for the renewal of drivers’ licenses, not the abolition of the entire LTMS system.

Guadiz had expressed concern about the validation exam because there is no facial recognition mechanism to verify the identity of the applicant.

“We think that the system needs a facial recognition app for us to be able to effectively use the portal. If that feature is added, fraud cannot be committed. The portal should see the actual person doing the exam, the one who owns the driver’s license,” Guadiz said during the Senate hearing.