LTO reminds motorists: unauthorized use of commemorative license plates faces apprehension, penalty

Motorists who are still using any form of unauthorized commemorative license plates are facing fines and other penalties when apprehended.

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) made the announcement after a Facebook group page called “Philippine National Police Academy – Justice, Integrity, Service” posted a public advisory with a photo of a motor vehicle bearing a commemorative license plate bearing the letters “PNPA.”

LTO Assistant Secretary Jose Arturo Tugade encouraged the public to remove such unlawful license plates, saying that the aforementioned commemorative plates should no longer be displayed in any motor vehicle.

“The current administration of the LTO has not recommended commemorative license plates to be issued to motor vehicle owners, thus its use is therefore prohibited. If vehicle owners are caught by law enforcers still using commemorative plates whose effectivity dates have already expired, they will be apprehended and fined,” the LTO chief was quoted as saying.

The agency noted that under DOTC Joint Administrative Circular No. 2014-01, owners using a motor vehicle with an unauthorized license plate are facing a P5,000-fine on the motor vehicle owner and confiscation of the plate.

Further, Tugade reiterated that the commemorative license plates should not be used to intimidate traffic enforcers and stop them from making apprehensions for traffic violations.

Commemorative license plates are those whose use is limited to the observance or commemoration of events that bear national significance, and with a validity of only one year as approved by the Department of Transportation (DOTr).

The LTO said in a statement that the administrators of the Facebook page warned the public of the presence of “unscrupulous people that are neither directly connected to nor a graduate of PNPA using commemorative plates, badges, emblems and stickers that are violative of traffic and other laws, something which we cannot tolerate.”

Photos from Ruben D. Manahan IV, Land Transportation Office-Philippines Facebook page, JayArt Tugade's communications team

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