BARMM to intensify drive vs 'colorum' vehicles

COTABATO CITY — The Bangsamoro government will intensify starting January 2024 its crackdown on unregistered passenger vehicles and cargo trucks in all six provinces and three cities under its jurisdiction.

Bangsamoro Transportation and Communications Minister Paisalin Tago told reporters on Monday that two agencies under him — the Bangsamoro Land Transportation Office and the Bangsamoro Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board — shall be in the forefront of the campaign, meant to ensure the safety of Muslim and Christian commuters in the autonomous region.

“It is a known fact that these so-called 'colorum,' or unregistered public vehicles, do not have insurance coverage and passengers will surely have problems if they figure in accidents while riding these units,” Tago said.

Tago said that besides the offices in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao of the LTO and the LTFRB, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications-BARMM shall also enlist the help of the police in its campaign to clear the thoroughfares in Maguindanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Sur, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi from colorum jeepneys and buses.

Functions of the LTO and the LTFRB were devolved to the BARMM government based on the region’s charter, the Republic Act 11054.

Tago, however, emphasized that their operation against colorum vehicles shall be carried out through dialogues with operators and drivers.

“Our LTO and LTFRB personnel had used diplomacy in addressing the problem in recent months and there was good turnout. So many owners of unregistered public transportation went to two agencies and had their units registered properly,” Tago said.

Tago said that their campaign shall also focus on assessing the road worthiness of buses owned by big companies with franchises to operate through routes connecting the Bangsamoro provinces to areas in Mindanao’s adjoining Administrative Regions 9, 10, 11 and 12.