GORDON REITERATES MOTORCYCLE CRIME PREVENTION LAW MUST BE IMMEDIATELY IMPLEMENTED AFTER ASSASSINATION OF FORMER BUCOR LEGAL CHIEF BY RIDING-IN-TANDEM SUSPECTS

Senator Richard J. Gordon reasserted the urgent need to implement Republic Act No. 11235 or the Motorcycle Crime Prevention Law following the assassination of former Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) legal service chief Atty. Fredric Anthony Santos who was shot dead Wednesday afternoon in Barangay Poblacion, Muntinlupa City by unidentified riding-in-tandem hitmen.

Gordon, the principal author of the law, once again called on the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to come up with its implementing rules and regulations (IRR) so that the law, that aims to secure the public from crimes committed using motorcycles, can be implemented right away.

"Riding-in-tandem na naman ito! Nasaan 'yung plaka? Bakit hindi pa nilalabas 'yung plaka? There is a series of riding-in-tandem at ang daming pinapatay. This is not a small case. I hope we will not treat this as another statistic na dapat ay okay lang 'yan. This is a serious thrust against the heart of justice in this country," he said in an interview.

With R.A. 11235, using bigger, readable and color-coded plates will be enforced so that the number plates of motorcycles used in crimes can be easily identified and the use of stolen license plates can be prevented.

According to the news monitoring of Gordon's office, there are 55 riding-in-tandem cases in the country from January 1 to February 19 of this year alone. Santos is the latest reported victim. He was suspended by the Office of the Ombudsman last September 2019 after finding out that he was involved in the questionable release of prison convicts in violation of the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) law.

"Riding-in-tandem assassins are still terrorizing the country. There is no time to tarry; there is an urgent need to implement this law to stop these crimes," Gordon said in a previous statement.