It was one of the most memorable and applauded directives of Benigno Aquino III when he assumed the presidency in 2010: a ban on the use of wang-wang or sirens as well as blinkers on civilian vehicles.
President Duterte has sustained the ban, which is in fact mandated under Presidential Decree 96 issued way back in January 1973. But entitlements are not given up easily. Certain government officials and private VIPs have found a way to circumvent the ban in the traffic-choked streets of Metro Manila: they use motorcycle-riding cops, who are authorized to use wang-wang and blinkers, as escorts to get ahead of other motorists.
The Philippine National Police has limited resources. PNP motorcycles are supposed to be used for conducting patrols, raising police visibility and chasing motorcycle-riding gunmen whose numbers seem to be increasing.
Now PNP chief Oscar Albayalde has reportedly ordered the strict enforcement of PD 96, with candidates in the May elections prohibited from using sirens, blinkers, horns and similar gadgets on their private vehicles to part the traffic for their campaign convoys.
It’s unclear if Albayalde’s order also covers patrol cops providing escort services for the campaign sorties of individual candidates. He may need to issue a separate order to PNP members, who may feel reluctant to say no especially if the one asking for such escort services is an incumbent public official.
Cops are on taxpayers’ payroll and should be keeping the general public safe. With the police-to-population ratio so inadequate, the assignment of PNP members as security escorts and bodyguards of public officials and private VIPs should be limited to the barest minimum. Most of these VIPs are wealthy enough to afford their own security teams.
There are 100 million Filipinos who must be kept safe from muggers, pickpockets, burglars, carjackers, rapists, drug pushers – you name it. Every motorist hates traffic and is in a rush to reach his destination. Police services must not be concentrated on a few lucky individuals. And that ban on wang-wang must be enforced.