Forum and Facebook topics: I hate motorcyclists!

To each is his own... People, from both sides, hate each others driving/riding habits...

These are the things the we all love to hate, but in reality, they speak the truth somewhat...

In one of the talks I have done, I spoke about the millions of riders out there which grows by the minute...

In the millions, we, in the community of MCP are but a measly .5 - 1% of the entire population...

Within the .5 - 1%, only 25% of that knows the basic laws...

And of that 25%, only 5% really understand them...

And of those who understand them, only half or maybe less really follow the rules of the streets...

Sad yet true...

We see them daily, everywhere and on any type of vehicle...

Enforcement, instead of making sure that everybody is following the rules, sometimes encourage us to break them by letting vehicles counterflow, go even if the light is red, stop even if the light is green and what not... Then they say were un disciplined...

The providers of our licenses and registration, do not check whether an individual is fit to ride/drive or if the vehicle is road worthy...

And in these discussions and forums, the irony and the hypocrisy is just abundant...

I don't feel surprised nor do I feel bad when these discussions come out... Because, it speaks the truth...

Sometimes people ask us (MRO and MAP) on why we even waste our time in perusing our advocacy... I simply say, somewhere, someone still needs help and is willing to do the right thing... If not us, then who?

Good day fellow riders...

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Featuring: A comment on one of my blog posts...

Here is the comment:

Anonymous said...

Tiga san ka ba jobert? tiga pasig ka ba? diba tiga marikina ka? anong paki mo sa ordinance ng pasig? kung eto gusto ng mga tiga pasig, respetuhin mo na lang gaya ng pag respeto namin sa mga ordinance ng marikina na mas malupit pa sa pasig pero wala namang nagrereklamo kasi para naman sa nakakarami. dapat lang naman hulihin yang mga pasaway na motor na yan may pa open-pipe open-pipe pang nalalaman, kala mo naman nakakadagdag sa bilis eh makupad pa rin yan kahit sumisigaw na yang makinang inang yan. panget na nga pakinggan, panget pa ang ugali sa pagrespeto sa ordinance. ewan ko na lang kung pati itsura eh, well alam mo na. - K
September 17, 2011 11:22 AM

Tis' what most people say... You can't please everybody...

I did reply to him in two separate posts:

Anonymous,

Sir, I am not from Pasig but does that matter? I pass through Pasig daily. So does other people.

Ang pinagkaiba ng ordinansa ng Marikina sa Ordinansa ng Pasig ay ang tamang implementasyon nito.

Nag babasa ka ba sir? Obviously, hinde. Wala tayong problema sa ordinansa at ang purpose ng ordinansang ito. Gusto din ng nakakarami ang tahimik na syudad. Pero ano ba katotohanan?

Tatahimik nga ba kung motor, lalo na yung maliliit lang ang papansinin? Ano to? Double standard?

Mawalang gana po pero mukhang di kayo nag isip muna o nag basa man lang bago kayo nag post dito.

Ang batas ay ginagawa ng patas at para sa lahat. Hindi ito ginagawa para man discriminate o mamili lang ng huhulihin. Hindi mo naitatama ang isang mali sa isa pang pag kakamali.

Natutuwa ako at nag post ka dito. Panakita mo lang ang pag ka kitid ng pag iisip mo.

Maraming salamat!

September 17, 2011 11:37 AM

You don't have to be from Pasig to state irregularities and wrongful implementation of the law. Pasig City has already declared that on Mayor Eusebio's page.

People pass through Pasig daily and the fact of the matter is, most of the reported apprehensions happen when people are not going into Pasig rather, those who are only passing by the outskirts of the City to get to another destination.

Then selective pa ang pag huhuli. Kung gusto nyong gawin illegal ang maingay, gawin nyo munang legal ang ordinansa nyo.

Walang standard, Walang panukat, Pinipili ang hinuhuli. Dyan pa lang, kitang kita na ang kakulangan ng ordinansang ito. Ngi walang public dissemination sa isang publication.

Ikaw taga Pasig ka ba? Nuff said.

September 17, 2011 11:45 AM

I hope people read before posting... We hate to see them shoot themselves in the foot...

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Pasig City acts on wrongful application and apprehensions for half baked ordinance

Our viral movement has worked!!!

From Facebook:

Pio PasigCity Thanks for being open about what you feel regarding the "Open Muffler" ordinance. Rest assured that our Mayor is acting on your issues/complaints. Kami rin po ay lumapit sa pamunuan ng ating TPMO para ma-inform sila sa inyong hinaing. Hindi po tinotolerate ng ating alakalde ang maling pamamaraan ng pang huli. Lahat din ng TPMO or any government officials/employees na mayroon open muffler ay pinatatakpan na. We will keep you updated on the issue.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bobby-Eusebio/250077511157


I have already answered back asking for an official statement on all Pio PasigCity's posts:

Jobert Bolanos Pio PasigCity, We are asking for your office to issue an official statement that we can pass on to our fellow riders... There are still apprehensions happening up to this day... We need something to show these abusive enforcers that what they are implementing is wrong... Thank you!

Also, I have made another statement on my own Wall asking for support. The battle has only begun. The war has yet to be finished.

Your support for better and fair governance is needed... We cannot allow our LGU's to make shortcuts when we pay for their salaries... Making a law is one thing, doing it wrong is another... You simply cannot correct one mistake with another...

We ask Pasig City to bring this back to the table and let us help them in making a better and "correct" law if they want their city to be "less noisy".

And hopefully, we can be part of this development to show our support for making better laws that govern our vehicle users.

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An open letter to Pasig City

If the law does not apply to all,
it shouldn't apply at all...

Greetings!

My name is Jobert Bolanos, Chairman of Motorcycle Rights Organization and President of Motorcycle Advocates of the Philippines. I would like to seek help in a brewing issue surrounding the apprehension of motorcycles in your City.

A few weeks ago, a few riders have sent word to the community that Pasig City enforcement had started apprehending motorcyclists for loud exhaust systems. I applaud the city for taking such measures to enforce the nation's laws that govern all vehicles however, there has been several things that are amiss or has not been explained properly.

I have been in contact with several people and offices of the DOTC to see if there has been anything written on the standards of the sound levels for all vehicles. And as far as my information gathered, there is still no definite law on this or it is still in the works as of this writing. Which brings me to the question of the said ordinance being implemented in Pasig City.

Here are a few of the things that I would like to clarify:

1. Has there been a public hearing for the ordinance that apprehends loud exhaust systems?

2. When and where was this ordinance published for public dissemination?

3. Was there a study made on what the standard is? What is the set standard?

4. How is the standard, if any, being measured?

5. Has all enforcement been trained for this?

6. Where is the procedure or Implementing Rules and Regulations for the ordinance?

As it seems, the ordinance as implemented and being carried out by your enforcers has been specifically targeted to apprehend motorcycles users only. And to be more specific, small motorcycle or underbone/scooter users only while the other bikes with higher displacements are being ignored. And what is more intriguing is other vehicles such as Jeeps, cars, vans, suv's, trucks and buses who have the same problem are also being ignored. As far as the ordinance is concerned, isn't it supposed to apply to every vehicle that passes through your city?

I was also provided a copy of the said ordinance by your Barangay Affairs Office (bao@pasigcity.gov.ph) and nothing in the said ordinance or any law in that matter has any Implementing Rules and Regulations on "Noise Contolling Devices" unlike the "Clean Air Act" which has it's own. Not even a hint or a simple description on what separates an open pipe to an aftermarket or performance muffler.

This creates a very vague picture of the law and is prone to subjective apprehensions. Each enforcer interprets the law in such a way that he does not even know the difference between an aftermarket pipe and open pipe.

And needless to say, how can you prohibit something that is openly sold in the market and punish the end users unnecessarily? If something readily available to the consumers are being sold is outlawed, should we take this off the market first before we regulate the end users? And should all vehicles be included as we see this not only on Motorcycles but on other vehicles as well?

I write this to clear out the issue and to prevent the community from escalating this issue any further.

If there is anything that our two organizations can do to assist the city in clearing out this ordinance or perhaps, making it more understandable and acceptable to the riding public, please do not hesitate in reaching us.

If it is also possible that we request for an audience to be able to talk to your principals so that we can discuss this matter.

Thank you and more power!


Jobert Bolanos
Motorcycle Rights Organization
Motorcycle Advocates of the Philippines
mro@motorcyclephilippines.com
+63921-775-4388

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Jumping the gun much?!? Philippine enforcement is going down the drain...

As per a friend: Cops have started apprehending vehicles using HID... As per LTO Chief Suansing's interview on radio today, they will be coming up with a memorandum stating the regulations for the use of HID and loud pipes/mufflers... Tell me, like I am a 5 year old, how in hell do we respect those who violate the rights of the people they are supposed to protect?!?

This only shows to prove the discrepancy and the unscrupulous activities that our enforcement engages in... There isn't a law out and they have jumped the gun and started acting even without a basis and IRR to guide them...

The Philippines, no matter how strong willed our leaders are, they have no control over the people they employ in doing acts that violate the rights of the very people they protect...

To our leaders, clean up your backyards!!! The country is getting more disgusting because of the attitude and foul practices that these government workers and enforcers are doing!!!

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Hypocrisy at its finest...

This is a reaction to a post by a forumer in motorcyclephilippines.com...

This post can be found here: Thread

My statement:

Matinong rason?

You now seek matinong rason?

Do you think that the reasons behind the ban itself is matino?

This is the very hypocrisy that I speak of...

These people like to pose as if they know everything or anything for that matter even if they do not understand or even try to look at the real cause of the problem...

Bakit ang daming naka motor o naka kotse o dryber ng jeep, bus, taxi o tricycle o ano mang sasakyan na kung sino sino at halos hindi alam ang patakaran ng kalsada?

Bakit ang daming motorista, mapa kotse, public utility vehicle, motorsiklo at pedestrian na walang respeto sa kapwa o courtesy sa pag mamaneho o pag gamit ng kalsada?

With these two questions alone, you already know the cause of the problem and where to fix it... Yet everybody takes a shortcut and puts the weight on the end-users instead... Applying rules and regulations that violates the very conditions that apply to making such... Quick fix? Power trip? Segregation? Feeling high and mighty? Not only that, these regulations are not even well thought of and have no concrete basis... And what rubs salt into the wound is the fact that a mere technicality does not require them to show any scientific or statistical reason to apply such rules...

And with that said, the very people who should be initiating the change and making the streets safer for everybody are the very people who break their own rules and think they are above the very laws they create...

Ganun naman palagi eh... When people address and speak of the problems, the people who are infected with the vile issues are the first to call foul... First to say that the people against them are liars and black propaganda instigators... Funny how that works... Yet they cant even come out of the protection of anonymity and prove their assumptions of such...

Then they use the system that won by a mere technicality against everything else to support their biased opinions... Then they take on the forums and claim that these rules are just and fair because of a mere court decision that won on a technicality... Is there such a thing as fair and just anymore? We have seen how people get the far end of the stick because of these half baked solutions that they think of... Even if they are pledged to be serving the people, helping the people and protecting the people, they instead, put the people on the frying pan or the milking stable just to be able to say, "makapag implement ng batas lang"...

I don't know about you, but for me, I pay my god damn taxes so my government can serve me right... But the way things are going, the government only serves it self and protects it self instead of the people that puts the money in their pockets...

The solution is clear... But they turn to the ones they swore to protect and lay the full burden on them... While they enjoy the privileges given to them and walk above water...

I have lost faith in the government a long time ago... And I continue to loose more each day... Yet I push my self and my fellow citizens to keep up, fight for whats right and fair, stay with the struggle and even sit down with the very people cheating us out of our constitutional rights... Because I believe we can and I believe they should fix their own back yards...

They allowed the pasaways on the roads... They turn a blind eye on them and even, at times, lead them into doing violations... They put us where we are... And even how much and how hard we try to fix our selves and our fellow citizens, if the people who swore to protect the tax payers are taking a siesta and enjoying their salary while only doing a quarter of the supposed work they should be doing, nothing we can do can help fix the problem...

There used to be a strict standard in obtaining the right to be on the roads... Where is that standard? Nowadays, if you have money, you can get a license if you don't have any understanding or direct knowledge of the laws of the land... Heck, you can even get a license without knowing how to drive...

So tell me again... Is there really no sensible reason in feeling ill about laws such as this that repel equal protection from the laws and segregates us by class?

Then let me ask you this, do these people in the government and the tollway operators have the sensibility to fix the problem at its roots?!?

You assume that every sub 400 rider will only instigate chaos and end up in the grave if let in the tollways... While the reckless, arrogant and carefree are allowed to roam these very highways... What do you call that again? Oh yeah... It is called H Y P O C R I S Y...

Buti sana kung sa pagbawal ng mga sub 400 sa mga daanang ito ay sinasabayan ng pagiging strikto, pag apply ng tamang enforcement at pag sa ayos sa pag silbe sa tunkulin sa mamayan, then there wouldn't be any need for MRO or Gabriela or Piston and what not...

Hypocrisy at its finest... I sometimes ask myself why I even take the time and effort to battle these things even if there is hardly any positive change...

ONLI IN D PILIPIN...

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Ignorance of the law?

Yes, Ignorance of the Law excuses no one... But the laws of the streets must be in check through careful screening of every driver who tries to get a license... Does that happen enough?

Just by looking and observing the riders and drivers out there, you will see that there are a lot of things that they do not understand... What contributes to this lack of understanding?

1. They are not screened properly
2. They have not gone through the licensing seminar that everybody was required to take when I first got my license
3. The lack of enforcement for the basic laws such as head light and tail light color is clearly evident... We see bikes as well as cars running different colors for their lights... A basic law that is being ignored...
4. The lack of pushing penalties to those who clearly violates the laws especially on public transport... It should be a zero tolerance regulation that if a public transport driver violates a traffic law, he gets stripped off his license since he does not only endanger his life but the lives of his passengers...

e.g.

Buses and jeepneys cutting 2-3-4 lanes to stop...
Buses and jeepneys swerving, dodging and bobbing on the road...
Tricycles doing sudden U-turns...
Taxi cabs doing sudden stops, u-turns, counterflowing, swerving, lane hogging, etc...

5. The amount of corruption on the streets that the departments concerned keeps on denying
6. The enforcement breaking the very rules they are trying to implement
7. The application of new rules when the old and basic ones are bing ignored
8. The application of new rules without consultation, proper dissemination, study, research and lack of Implementing Rules and Regulations
9. The lack of training for all enforcement
10. The countless self interpretation of the laws that leads to abuse
12. Poor road and traffic systems

I can go on and on with the problems and we can all do what we can amongst ourselves... But even if we go beyond ourselves and direct help and assistance to the departments on how we can help solve these issues, there always seems to be a reason for them not to do it...

But does that stop us? No... We still do what we can to keep on pushing for the proper implementation of the old laws and do what we can to provide as much information and suggestions for the new ones they keep making...

So back to what was said, what attributes to that lack of knowledge about the laws? It is simply, the lack of screening and guidance from the beginning of ones driving/riding lifetime...

Driving and riding tests should be mandatory... You fail, you dont get a license... You try again after a certain period of time... Much like the way it is done in the US and the way we used to do it...

You apply, you take the test... Not just written but practical tests as well... Just like the good old days... By focusing on this, you then filter out the continous growth of ignorant and reckless drivers out there... Then you work on stricter enforcement to keep everybody on check...

To be honest, the enforcement could really make a killing if the old laws are enforced to the letter... I can stand in one corner and get my apprehension quota in less than half a day by just catching each and every violator on an intersection... But the amount of selective apprehension and linency being given to people out on the streets makes it worse and worse each day...

Whether you like it or not, the truth still remains... What people see on the road becomes habit forming... Until they get so used to it, everybody thinks is alright... And enforcement practices lead to one thing... Double standards galore...

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