It’s been a long time coming, but the full implementation of the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act (Republic Act No. 11229) is finally upon us—it begins tomorrow, February 2, 2021. Naturally, motorists have a lot of questions about the law’s implementing guidelines.
Questions on age and size of the child
One common concern is this: If a child aged 12 or below is already as big as an adult, does he still need a child restraint system (CRS)? The simple answer is no. There’s even a table included in our previous story that covers just that.
Land Transportation Office (LTO) director Clarence Guinto, however, had other things to say about the matter. He was asked the same question by DZMM TeleRadyo’s Sakto host Amy Perez during a recent interview.
“Ang tanong, direktor, kung ang 12 years old niyo po ay sobrang tangkad at siya po ay lalagyan ng booster—so aangat po yun, tatama ang ulo sa kotse—hindi po ba mas delikado yun kapag nagkaroon po tayo ng aksidente?” Perez inquired.
“Siguro, Ma’am Amy, laki-lakihan mo yung sasakyan mo,” Guinto quipped. In other words, what Guinto said is that if your kid is too big for your car, then you should get a bigger car. You can check out the actual clip here:
Frankly, we think (or at least we’re hoping) Guinto merely said it in jest. He followed his comment with a quick laugh and said that the LTO will take note of the concern. The thing is, we motorists—especially the parents among us—just want a better understanding of the matter, especially since we’ll be at the receiving end of penalties and fines once authorities begin apprehending violators.
UPDATE, 1 February 2021: Guinto has since issued a statement regarding the matter through the LTO-NCR Facebook page. See the post below:
Here’s hoping that things will become clearer real soon and that the entire implementation will be as smooth as intended. Again, the full implementation of the law begins on February 2, but apprehensions won’t begin until at least three months from now.
What’s your take on all this, readers? Sound off in the comments.
