LTO-6: Hit-and-run driver may lose license

By Joseph Bernard A. Marzan

Land Transportation Office (LTO) Region 6 OIC-Director Gaudioso Geduspan II said the recent death of a cyclist in Pavia, Iloilo, caused by a hit-and-run driver, is a “serious matter” for the agency.

Geduspan shared with the media that they initially failed to serve the show-cause order dated June 11 on the suspect, Rudolph Dela Rosa, on Wednesday, June 12, because his address on their records was not updated.

The regional office’s legal team attempted to serve the order on the suspect again on Friday, June 14, but Geduspan did not have details on the status of the service.

“When it was served in Mandurriao, which was their address listed with the LTO, we learned that their property had been sold to another person for a long time. So, we had to resort to the address in Calinog provided by the police,” Geduspan told reporters in Guimaras on Saturday.

“On Friday, June 14, it was served, still through personal service, in Calinog. I don’t know what happened, but once it is served, he will be given three days to respond. If he does not respond, we will issue the resolution based on the proof we have, which is the traffic incident report given by the police,” he added.

With the three days given to the suspect to respond to the order, the LTO-6 chief hopes that he would be able to state his side, given that the Pavia police’s report is the agency’s only basis now.

“We are hoping that he would answer so that at least we would be able to know his side. But right now, we couldn’t seem to reach him. I think there hasn’t been a warrant of arrest yet. The Pavia police have filed a complaint with the prosecutor, so there is no reason for him to hide. So, I think one of these days, he will surface, and probably we can learn where he lives, and we could serve the show-cause order,” he said.

Geduspan explained that the LTO’s jurisdiction in the case is purely administrative, with penalties limited to suspension or revocation of the suspect’s driver’s license.

If Dela Rosa’s license is permanently revoked, he may no longer be able to drive a vehicle and can no longer reapply for a license anywhere in the country.

“The criminal aspect is different; that belongs to the prosecutor with the reports. For us, it is only the administrative aspect, which is the suspension or revocation of the license. The issue for the LTO-6 is whether or not he is an improper person to drive a motor vehicle,” he said.

Geduspan reminded the public that incidents like these may cause the suspension or revocation of one’s driver’s license.

“The driver’s license is just a privilege. It is not a right. The government can revoke it anytime if we find that you are an improper person to drive a motor vehicle,” he said.

“What we saw in the police’s complaint was for murder and frustrated murder with the use of a motor vehicle. For us, that is a serious matter. We will wait if the prosecutor finally resolves the case because once probable cause is found, that is reason enough for us to impose sanctions on his driver’s license,” he added.

The June 2 incident took the life of a 33-year-old cyclist via head injury, while his 23-year-old female partner received several injuries.