SOME time ago, Vice-President Fernando Lopez was taken to task by
Rep. Cipriano Allas, of Pangasinan, for allegedly using seven government
cars. Quite naturally, Lopez was stunned. He has been vociferous
against graft and corruption in the government and equally vocal against
extravagant spending of the people’s money, and here he was being
charged with something which he has openly condemned as against public
policy.
After recovering from the shock, Lopez dictated a letter telling the
Pangasinan legislator that since he became vice-president, he has been
assigned only one official car, a model 1946 Packard which President
Quirino used when he was vice-president. He also informed Allas that the
other Lopez cars, while also bearing NO. 2 plates, are his own private
property and are being operated and maintained with his own personal
funds.
In addition the public should know that Lopez is using a
privately-owned jeepster for official purposes. He pays the salary of
its driver as well as its maintenance expenses. At a recent cabinet
meeting, President Quirino directed Budget Commissioner Pio Joven to
assign another official car to Lopez because when Quirino was
vice-president he also had a small official car besides a big Packard.
Obviously, the additional car was for the use of bodyguards. But, as
everybody knows, Lopez does not have any bodyguards. The
vice-president’s aid rides with him in his only official car.
Only two weeks ago, Lopez wrote Commissioner Joven and asked that the
big and expensive Packard car assigned to him be replaced with a
“smaller and cheaper one, like a Ford or a Chevrolet.” Not that Lopez
does not love expensive cars. But he does not want them at the people’s
expense. Among his private cars are a Lincoln Continental and a new
7-passenger De Soto, for the use of his family, and a huge Cadillac,
which is reserved for the use of his guests in Iloilo.
But back to the charge of Representative Allas. Undoubtedly, he was
motivated by the best of intentions and Lopez complimented him for it.
But, to use football parlance, Allas kicked off with the wrong foot. He
should have looked around a little closely and he would have found that
this government is indeed top-heavy with so-called official cars.
According to Primo Villar, chief of the Motor Vehicles Office, the
Philippine government is now operating and maintaining at least 4,000
vehicles. Budget Commissioner Joven himself estimated that the
government spends an average of P6,000 a year on each of these cars.
That means that government expenditures on official cars alone amount to
the staggering total of around P24,000,000 a year. And that does not
include the purchase price of the vehicles.
Due perhaps to our sadly depleted finances, high government officials
finally awoke recently to this scandalous situation and decided to do
something about it. Commissioner Joven initiated a move to limit the use
of government cars to as few public officials as possible, and to sell
such vehicles as are found in excess of those needed for official
purposes. Rep. Miguel Cuenco, of the 5th district of Cebu, was quick to
take the cue and last week introduced at the second special session of
congress a bill “defining the officers who shall be entitled to use
government motor vehicles or to receive an allowance in lieu thereof and
providing for the sale of excess government motor vehicles.”
In the explanatory note to his bill, Cuenco said: “It is of common
knowledge that government cars are being used by relatives and friends
of public officials in going to schools, night clubs, theaters and
markets. Such cynical contempt for the principle that public property
must be used only for public purpose must be stopped.
“To minimize, if not totally stop, this scandalous misuse of public
property and the consequent drain on our national coffers, this bill
which would limit the use of such cars to only the highest ranking
officials of our government is being introduced. The cabinet is
empowered to determine what other officers and what government services
may use government cars or to grant such officers an allowance in lieu
thereof.
“All motor vehicles in excess of those authorized by this bill shall
be sold at public auction to the highest bidder giving preference to the
officers at present using them. A commission composed of responsible
officials of the government is created to sell said cars.”
Under the bill, the President of the Philippines is authorized to use
two government automobiles, as against the half dozen now at the
disposal of President Quirino, and the following officials are
authorized to use only one official car each: the vice-president, the
president of the Senate, the speaker of the House, the chief justice of
Supreme Court, the president pro-tempore of the Senate, the speaker
pro-tempore of the House, the majority floor leaders of both houses, the
department secretaries, the chairmen of the committees on finance and
on accounts of the Senate, the chairmen of the committees on
appropriations and on accounts of the House, the department
undersecretaries, the secretaries of both houses, the chief of staff of
the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and the chief of the constabulary.
Under the bill, the cabinet is empowered to “determine what other
officers of the government shall be entitled to use for official
business one government automobile each or to grant an allowance in lieu
thereof. . .and to authorize the use of motor vehicles by any
department, bureau, office, agency or instrumentality of the government”
which the cabinet may deem proper.
The bill, if approved, would certainly reduce government expenses on
official cars. But it is doubtful if the scandalous misuse of such
vehicles will actually be stopped or even minimized. For it has become
the rule rather than the exception to use these cars for purposes other
than official. Some of those privileged to use—or misuse—government
vehicles also seem to have the mistaken idea that cars with the
distinctive P1 plates are exempt from the normal operation of traffic
rules and regulations, as may be frequently witnessed on the streets of
Manila.
And so, we have the questionable group of individuals, relatives and
friends of government bigwigs, who sport around with low-numbered plates
on their cars. It is a clear case of misrepresentation, but it is
tolerated. They accomplish the trick by the simple expedient of
registering their cars in the name of some friend or relative who
happens to be a senator or a representative and they get a No. 7 or 8
plate as the case may be.
Utmost Courtesy
What is the motive behind this practice? In some instances, the
reason may be just plain vanity. Others may derive some fun masquerading
around as a big shot in the government, if they can avoid being
mistaken for that official’s chauffeur. But the primary intention seems
to be to avail themselves of the traditional “courtesy” of traffic
police officers. For traffic cops are supposed to extend the utmost
courtesy to people using cars bearing plate numbers from 1 to 12.
Strange though it may seem, not all the vehicles bearing those
numbers are government cars. Most of the senators and representatives,
who are assigned plates No. 7 and 8 respectively, but their own cars.
Associate Justices of the supreme court, who are authorized to use No.
9, are not privileged to misuse government cars. Nor are the justices of
the court of appeals, who use No. 10 plates, nor the members of the
commission on elections, who have been assigned No. 11.
Nevertheless, as pointed out, the government is operating and maintaining 4,000 vehicles. Entirely too many.
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