By Raymond Carl Dela Cruz
MANILA – The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said Thursday it is investigating a bus company following two separate complaints of animal cruelty and showing disrespect to a person with disability (PWD).
In a statement, LTFRB Chair Teofilo Guadiz III said the company, Solid North Transit, may be issued a show cause order based on separate incidents on April 18 and 20.
A complainant reported on April 19 that the conductor of a bus plying the Tarlac-Baguio route took her pet carrier with her cat inside and threw it into the baggage compartment.
The complainant also accused both the driver and conductor of making comments that the cat could die inside the hot compartment, prompting her to leave the bus before reaching her destination.
On the other hand, a complainant reported that on April 20, a conductor of the same company aboard a bus on the Baguio-La Union route mocked and called her child “pipi” (mute).
Guadiz said both incidents violated agency rules on passengers’ safety in public transportation.
“Iyong mga ganitong pangyayari sa public transport ay dapat ma-address. Hindi dapat ito ma-normalize dahil karapatan ng mga pasahero at kaligtasan nila at ng kanilang pets ang nalalabag dito (These incidents in public transport should be addressed. These should not become normal because passengers’ rights and their and their pets’ safety are being violated here),” he said.
He warned bus operators, drivers, and conductors against disrespecting passengers, reminding them to always treat commuters with respect and to show courtesy to PWDs.
“We must treat these complaints seriously because if we let it happen once, twice, baka ma-normalize, eh hindi tama ‘yon (it may be accepted as normal, and that is not right). We assure you that we will deal with this accordingly.”
On the other hand, he reminded that LTFRB guidelines require passengers traveling with pets on public transport to have a vaccination record of their pet, to put the pet in carriers or cages, and to carry a travel clearance from the Bureau of Animal Industry. (PNA)
