LTO chief Tugade warns accredited clinics: Shape up or get shut down

In his first few weeks on the job, Land Transportation Office (LTO) chief Jose Arturo Tugade has gone after corruption in his agency and allegedly errant LTO enforcers.

This time, Tugade warned LTO-accredited doctors and medical clinics to do their jobs properly, or they will face suspension or permanent closure.

This comes after Tugade received reports that medical certificates were being issued to driver’s license applicants without any actual physical examination.

“My marching orders to all regional and district offices nationwide was to weed out corruption not only in LTO offices themselves but also those in accredited partners like medical clinics, whose services are part of the process for securing driver’s licenses or motor vehicle registration,” he said in a December 1, 2022 press statement.

Tugade added that the medical certificate is a “vital part of the driver’s license application process” as it involves checking an applicant’s motor skills, eyesight, and hearing. 

“We continue to remind the public that a driver’s license to operate a motor vehicle is not a right but a privilege granted by the government,” he said. 

“No one should circumvent the process in the issuance of a driver’s license, and the job of the LTO is to make sure that it is issued only to qualified drivers as part of promoting road safety,” Tugade added.

Bacolod clinic suspended for ‘rubber-stamp’ certificates

Tugade cited the case of a clinic in Bacolod City that was hit with a 60-day suspension order by LTO Region 6 after it was reported that the clinic issued too many medical certificates in a single day.

The LTO said the clinic was also deactivated from the agency’s IT system, which provides a direct link for accredited medical personnel to applicant records.

LTO Region 6 assistant regional director Gaudioso Geduspan II reported that the clinic issued as many as 186 medical certificates in a single day.

Prior to the closure, a show-cause order had been issued against the clinic to explain why it issued what the LTO perceived as a “statistically improbable” number of certificates. 

The clinic’s management, through its legal counsel, explained that it usually had a large volume of clients daily that line up as early as 6:30 a.m.

To confirm this, an LTO member went to the clinic last week posing as a client and tried to secure a medical certificate. 

The member saw that there were only a few people at the clinic and was surprised at how fast the certificate was issued, complete with the stamped name and signature of the accredited doctor, even without a physical examination.

The agency said this was in violation of LTO Memorandum Circular 2018-2157.

What else should LTO chief Tugade take on in his new role?