Fixers be gone! LTO chief Tugade revives ban on unauthorized people in LTO facilities

It’s an order that we’ve all heard over the decades, but will it really come true this time?

In a November 2022 memorandum, Land Transportation Office (LTO) chief Jose Arturo Tugade ordered all LTO regional directors to “prohibit fixers from entering, roaming, waiting and/or other similar activities with any LTO offices and/or facilities.”

Fixers are individuals who, for a large fee, help facilitate transactions with the LTO like getting a driver’s license or renewing vehicle registration without going through the proper protocol.

This often results in unqualified drivers and non-roadworthy vehicles making it onto the street and endangering other road users.

Tugade added that LTO officials must submit a progress report every two months for monitoring and execution.

The LTO chief added that he will sue LTO staff who work with fixers.

“Let any LTO personnel be warned, that I will not hesitate to file charges against those who may be engaged in corrupt practices in cahoots with fixers that prevent the efficient delivery of service to the public, our customers,” he said.

Tech-driven anti-corruption drive

Tugade, who is the son of former Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, was appointed as LTO chief on Nov. 15, 2022.

The younger Tugade, who is also a lawyer, vowed to stamp out corruption in the controversial agency using technology.

“Through the power of digitalization as envisioned by Assistant Secretary Guadiz, we believe that the days of corruption in this Agency are numbered,” he said in a speech during the Nov. 16, 2022 turnover ceremony at the LTO Central Office in Quezon City.

Tugade replaced LTO officer-in-charge Teofilo Guadiz III, who was made assistant secretary of the Transportation Department’s Road Sector.

Should fixers really be worried with the LTO chief’s pronouncement?