LTFRB: Case of PUJ who body-shamed passenger forwarded to LTO

The case of the jeepney driver and operator who demanded for a passenger to disembark for being overweight has been forwarded to the Land Transportation Office for possible sanctions against them, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said Wednesday.

“‘Yung driver po, finorward ko na rin po ‘yung kanyang problema sa LTO sa posibleng kaharapin din po niya sa posibleng pag suspinde ng lisensya niya,” LTFRB chairman Atty. Teofilo Guadiz III said on Super Radyo dzBB.

(As for the driver, I have forwarded his case to the LTO for the possible suspension of his license.)

On Monday, a 29-year-old passenger filed a complaint with the LTFRB.

The passenger said she heard the driver’s wife telling him that she did not want a fat passenger and that she should get off the jeepney. She said the couple also blamed her for their tires going flat.

The LTFRB has ordered the driver and the operator to appear at a hearing on June 14, Friday.

According to Guadiz, the couple may be mandated to attend seminars.

“Other than possible sanction, baka i-require ho namin siyang mag undergo ng seminar po… Perhaps, part of the reformatory measure, pa-attendin hindi lang siya, pati ‘yung asawa niya na nagpahiya doon sa pasahero,” he said.

(Other than possible sanctions, we can require him to undergo a seminar… Perhaps, as part of the reformatory measure, we can require not only him but also his wife who shamed the passenger.)

Complaints

Meanwhile, Guadiz said the LTFRB still receives many complaints from passengers on discrimination, which usually take place on provincial buses.

“It takes different forms. May mga pinababa dahil matanda na. I'm sorry about it, pero ganon ho ‘yung mga nature nila. Or hindi po maganda yung mga pananamit, pinabababa ho,” he said.

(It takes different forms. Some were asked to leave because they were too old. I'm sorry about it, but that was their nature. Or they were asked to disembark because they didn't dress well.)

He said that in one instance, the LTFRB had to suspend the entire fleet of a bus company for 30 days after they committed violations three times.

“To drive the message na hindi namin pwede pahintulutan na tuloy-tuloy na mangyari po ito,” he said.

(This is to drive the message that we will not allow this to continue.) — RSJ, GMA Integrated News