Beware bus rivers and operators!
The National Council on Disability Affairs (NCDA) is warning all public utility bus drivers and conductors to give the right treatment to persons with disability!
Mr. Israel Racosas, a passenger with disability (PWD) using a wheelchair recently sought the help of the NCDA to pursue his case against Victory Liner, Inc and its crew for displaying arrogance and discourtesy after his trip to Manila from Olongapo City, which resulted him to insult and humiliation.
Mr. Racosas filed a complaint with the Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB) with the assistance of NCDA against an arrogant and discourteous conductor in violation of the Terms and Conditions prescribed in the Certificate of Public Convenience and Memorandum Circular 2007-005.
The Victory Liner, Inc. and the bus crew of PUB Body No. 747 was slapped a fine of Three Thousand Pesos (P3,000.00) through an Order issued by a three-man investigation team from the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) and Land Transportation Office (LTO).
The said Order also recommends Victory Liner, Inc. crew to undergo a seminar and suspend his driver’s license. Further, the LTFRB Management Information Division was ordered not to issue the required confirmation of unit until a proof of compliance of payment of the said fine has been submitted as well as a proof that the bus crew has undergone the said seminar.
In a related event, Director Mateo Lee, Jr. of the NCDA said that to avoid the same incident to happen again, bus drivers and conductors should show courtesy and proper treatment to passengers with disabilities accorded to them. Should this persist, stiffer penalties may be imposed to those arrogant bus crews in the next time they will do the same discriminating acts which is a culpable violation of the Republic Act No. 7277 otherwise known as the Magna Carta for Persons with Disabilities.