LTO: No more paper licenses as 4M plastic cards 'secured'

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) said Saturday it will no longer be issuing paper-printed driver’s licenses as it secured around four million plastic cards.

“We would like to announce to our clients, to the Filipino people na wala ng lisensyang papel! Balik-plastic na lisensya na tayo!” said LTO chief Vigor Mendoza.

The LTO also said that the plastic cards secured for delivery are “more than enough to wipe out the backlog on driver’s licenses as well as the current daily usage through new application and renewal.”

“The delivery of these four million plastic cards is enough to address both the backlog and the daily usage through application and renewal of driver’s license," explained Mendoza.

LTO has been issuing paper licenses since April due to a shortage of supply of plastic cards. 

In August, the arrival of supplies hit a snag after a court issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) that prevented the agency from receiving plastic cards from contractor Banner PlastiCard.

Mendoza, however, said the four million plastic cards were secured after the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) elevated to the Court of Appeals the injunction order issued by the Quezon City court in connection with the delivery of the remaining 3.3 million plastic cards that were procured early this year.

If the Court of Appeals would rule in favor of the OSG petition, the LTO said this would mean additional 3.3 million plastic cards on top of the four million plastic cards that are expected to be delivered starting next month.

On license plates, around one million metal plates are currently produced every month and right now, according to the LTO chief, noting that the backlog for license plates was already wiped out. —VAL, GMA Integrated News