Tugade replaces Guadiz as LTO chief

Atty. Jose Arturo Tugade has been appointed as the new Assistant Secretary of the Land Transportation Office (LTO).

Tugade recently took his oath of office before Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista after being appointed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. — replacing Atty. Teofilo Guadiz III.

 In a statement, the newly-installed LTO chief promised to implement reforms within the agency and improve service delivery to the people.

"We are partners for progress, advocates of safety, and must be champions of excellence and efficiency. Foremost, we need to remember that we are in the service industry. Hence, we need to focus and improve the quality of our customer service to the public,” Tugade said.

Further, Tugade said the promoting intensified road safety campaign will be one of his top priorities and will further strengthen the presence of LTO enforcers to properly implement transportation laws and traffic codes.

Aside from enhancing the quality of service and promoting road safety, Tugade also vowed to weed out corruption within the LTO ranks. He pointed out that one way to address the problem is to limit human intervention in various agency transactions. “To this end, we shall exert all efforts to digitalize our agency,” he shared.

“What we can assure everyone is that I am an obedient soldier. I will perform and execute tasks assigned to me with passion and efficiency. I will work closely with Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista to ensure that the direction and marching order of the President of further developing transportation will be delivered,” Atty. Tugade said.

 For his part, Bautista welcomed Tugade’s appointment, saying the latter’s experience in management and litigation makes him suited for the position.

“When I talked to Atty. Tugade after the announcement, we both discussed how we can better serve the DOTr. It was then that we realized that he is better suited to the LTO. We immediately asked the indulgence of the President and explained the gravity of the situation in the LTO and the importance of the work that has to be done as well as the willingness of Atty J Art to do it. In the end, the President understood the situation,” Bautista said.

Meanwhile, Guadiz will take on the position of Assistant Secretary for the DOTr’s Road Sector.

Photos from Communications Team of Assistant Secretary Jayart Tugade, Land Transportation Office Facebook page

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