Colurum Capital

General Santos City could very well be the colurum capital of the Philippines. The city, with a population of 529,542 as of 8/1/2007, is rapidly urbanizing but is still served by around 5,000 tricycles more than half of which are colurum - private vehicle used for hire. Add to the number of illegal vehicles for hire are the notorious habal-habals now numbering in the thousands.

The taxi industry is almost dead due to these illegal operation of the said vehicles. They are, in essence, stealing the livelihoods of legal drivers and operators of public transport vehicles.

The habal-habals (picture on the left) poses the greatest danger to society due to its very nature. The Mindanao Medical Center receives at least one habal-habal accident victim everyday. They are overloaded, over-speeding and uses no protective helmets. Only one third of habal-habal drivers have helmets and more half of them just hangs the darn things on their arms. It if as if they can react fast enough to wear their helmets just before their faces hit the concrete after an accident. The Land Transportation Office lists non-wearing of helmet (includes passengers) as an offense (violation code 54F) with corresponding P1,000.00 fine. GMA TV reported that the updated fine in now P1,500.00. The government loses around three million a day by not apprehending the two thousand or so non-helmet wearing "organ-donors" in General Santos City alone.

The Land Transport Act of the country (RA 4136) prohibits private vehicles from operating as for hire vehicles due to regulation principles (to ensure that the vehicle is fit for hire, the drivers are licensed professionally, and the vehicle has passenger insurance). Using private passenger automobiles, private trucks, private motorcycles, and motor wheel attachments for hire (Violation of Sec. 7 (a), (b) and (c), in relation to Sec. 56 (j) is punishable according to the DOJ with fines of P200.00 on the first offense, P300.00 + 6 months jail time on the 2nd offense and 1 year jail + revocation of license every time after that. Owners who allow their vehicles to be operated as such (Sec. 56(k)) are also liable and can be fined P500.00 + 3 months suspension of vehicle registration. If the traffic/law enforcement authorities are to apprehend the 5000+ illegal tricycles and habal-habals in Gensan, the government will earn around four million pesos in fines.

Last local elections (May 2007), all the candidates, including the now re-elected mayor, showed tolerance to these illegal vehicles. I wonder if a class-suit or impeachment against the mayor would stick for failure to provide a safe environment or gross negligence (non-enforcement of laws). Hmmm.

A motorcycle driver or passenger without a helmet is grossly IGNORANT. The same with a helmet but does not wear it is utterly STUPID!!!