The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) issued a thorough reminder to all public officials: Government-owned vehicles must only be used in “the performance of official functions.”
This also means that those red and protocol-plated cars cannot be used during an official’s personal time or at their leisure. The DILG published this notice through Memorandum Circular No. 2026-011, issued on February 6, 2026.
The memorandum also states that appointed and elected officials caught misusing their supplied car may be held administratively, or even criminally, liable. Along with all public officials, the DILG extended the notice to its central, regional, and field personnel, as well as its other branches and agencies.
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While these guidelines and prohibitions aren’t new, the department felt the need to remind its fellow agencies after reports related to the issue arose. It was written on the notice that “unauthorized or non-official use of government vehicles during these periods results in unnecessary expenditure of public funds and undermines public trust in government institutions.”
In case you didn’t know, these cars are only supposed to be used for official government business. That then entails that these cars are banned on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, as government offices are closed on these days.
