Philippines: Distracted Driving Demarche Reply

UNCLAS MANILA 000336 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR OES (NCARTER-FOSTER) STATE ALSO FOR OES/STC (EPADGETT) HHS/OSSI/DSI PASS TO OGHA (JMONAHAN/ACUMMINGS) TRANSPORTATION PASS TO NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON SOCI ELTN UNDP UNGA RP SUBJECT: Philippines: Distracted Driving Demarche Reply Ref: A) State 06703 ¶1. (U) On January 29 Embassy delivered reftel demarche to Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Assistant Secretary for American Affairs Lourdes Yparraguirre and DFA Assistant Secretary for United Nations and International Organizations Leslie Gatan. Post also contacted the Land Transportation Office (LTO) of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC),the Public Safety Office of the Metro Manila Development Authority and the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC)to obtain requested information. On February 17 DOTC Assistant Secretary Arturo C. Lomibao provided a letter with information on the legal context, traffic accident data, and public awareness efforts related to distracted driving. Neither the DFA nor the DOTC expressed an interest in committing the Philippine Government to international efforts on this issue. -------------- Distracted Driving Laws in Legislative Limbo -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Two bills pending in the Philippine House and Senate would restrict the use of mobile communication devices while driving (while still permitting hands-free device use),exempting persons performing "urgent, emergency and official functions". The House bill stipulates fines of 5,000 Philippine pesos (approximately 109 USD) and revocation of driving privileges for the fourth offense, while the Senate bill increases the fine to 10,000 pesos and adds imprisonment for not more than one year. An aide to House Transportation Committee Chairman Monico O. Puentebella told us, however, that the bill was unlikely to pass the House this session. The Senior Liaison Officer for the Senate Presidential Legislative Liaison Office predicted a similar fate for the Senate bill. Both aides said legislators were too preoccupied by the upcoming elections to prioritize the bills' passage. (Note: Nationwide polls are scheduled for May 10. End Note.) Mandaluyong City, one of the seventeen municipalities that comprise Metro Manila, passed a local ordinance in 2007 restricting the use of mobile communications devices while driving. ¶3. (U) The Chief of the LTO's Traffic Safety Unit Daisy Jacobo told Econ LES that although her office strongly supports the aforementioned bills, to date her office has focused on the passage of national safety legislation in four key areas: 1) the use of helmets by motorcyclist, 2) driving while intoxicated, 3) mandatory use of seat belts, and 4) speed management. To date comprehensive legislation has been passed only with regard to seat belt usage. ¶4. (U) The Philippine National Police reported 592 road accidents nationwide for the period 1998-2008 attributable to cell phone use. No information is available as to the severity of the accidents. LTO officials told us that they consider this figure to be under reported. -------------- No Distracted Driving Awareness Campaign Yet -------------- ¶5. (U) The LTO and the private sector are conducting general road safety awareness campaigns, but have not focused on the specific hazards of using cell phones while driving. The proposed House and Senate bills do mandate an information and education campaign on the consequences of distracted driving within six months of the bill's passage. ¶6. (U) The Chief of the NTC's Regulation Department told Econ LES that there were approximately 80 million cell phone subscribers in the Philippines by the end of 2009, an increase of over 15 percent from the previous year. This constitutes a penetration rate of approximately 86 percent. No official statistics describing the prevalence of cell phone use while driving are available, according to the NTC. Bassett