by Prix D Banzon

Davao City (1 July) -- Some policemen in Davao City are deputized by the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to implement law enforcement and traffic functions but they are warned to handle carefully the TOP (temporary operator's permit) they issue to drivers.

Atty. Gomer Dy, regional director of the LTO XI there are about 55 of them in Davao City and they have found out that of the number only 35 are with clean record.

Dy said before the policemen were issued deputation order and ID they have to undergo four-day training on traffic rules.

"We need to work with them on what to do and what not to do especially on the nagging issue about "kotong", he said.

As far as the issuance of TOP is concerned, he said each traffic is issued a booklet of 25 sets but the police only have to issue one TOP per day and they have to issue the TOP within the month, he said.

This scheme was designed to control the issuance of the TOP ug TOP man gud ang ginagamit panghadlok ug diha na magsugod ang kotong, he said.

Dy said once the booklet is lost and based on the ruling of the Commission on Audit, the policeman has to pay P10,000.

"We also emphasized to the police officers that they must come up with quality apprehension where it has a lead that could stand in court in case charges will be filed," he said.

But he said the apprehension on field is not final because it has to pass a process even as he said that the apprehending officer must approach the driver with violation and not the driver to go to the officer as what happened in the past.

The TOP has to be filled up with black ink and not in pencil and the appropriate boxes be marked X. There are cases that the apprehending officer use pencil and just check the blank where later they could change the entry based on what intention the officer has in mind.