Among the most widely applauded early directives of Benigno Aquino III when he assumed the presidency was his prohibition on the use of sirens or wang-wang by anyone except authorized personnel in police vehicles, fire trucks and ambulances.
Overnight, one of the most ubiquitous symbols of entitlement and deep social inequality in this country vanished, at least in Metro Manila and other urban centers. The widespread use of phone cameras, social media and closed-circuit television cameras helped in the enforcement of the informal ban.
VIPs who couldn’t let go of what they believed was their entitlement, however, circumvented the ban and used police on motorcycles equipped with sirens and blinkers to part the traffic for them. Motorists who regularly use certain traffic-choked thoroughfares in Metro Manila have also raised suspicion that some politicians are using ambulances to take them to their destinations and circumvent the ban.
In several areas, certain individuals simply ignored the prohibition. With reports of such cases increasing, President Duterte has issued a timely pronouncement that he supports the wang-wang ban and wants it enforced. In line with this, law enforcers have launched a fresh crackdown.
Aquino had said that the ban on wang-wang also had a symbolic aspect: a prohibition on taking advantage of one’s position in government or station in life to disregard rules and gain an undue edge over others. This should also resonate with President Duterte, who has been reminding everyone, particularly allies who egged him to seek the nation’s highest office, that he abhors corruption. His new secretary of tourism, Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, said his first instruction to her was, “don’t be corrupt.”
A ban is only as effective as its enforcement. Sirens are back because people believe they can get away with it, nearly eight years after Aquino imposed the ban. Any crackdown on the use of wang-wang must be sustained and appropriate penalties imposed.