License blues

This happened weeks ago.

On the way to my brother's graduation in PICC I made a wrong turn in Makati. It being about a week before the elections I do the right thing and have the officer issue me a ticket.

I'm not a stranger to traffic violations. I am a conscientious, safe driver, but Manila streets are filled with traps particularly for unfamiliar drivers that I got my share of violation when I started driving. Growing pains, so to speak. Battle scars.

Filipino drivers know the weird regulations in every city. For example, there's this trap in Gil Puyat in Manila, just before World Trade Center, where the second inner lane suddenly becomes a must-turn-left lane. This is unusual because the second inner lane is usually the optional lane. There are no signs that point to it except for paint on the road, which when you see it is already too late and the enforcers stationed there has caught you.

Enforcers, yes, because three or more enforcers are standing near the area at any given time to grin at you while flagging your car. And when you talk to them you'd know quickly that they are asking for bribes. I have experienced this but perhaps it this story is for another blog post.

Anyway. So there we were in Makati. Driving from Marikina to Makati took a lot of time already, and at those moments I have encountered cars with Duterte stickers on them saying "change is coming". And yet, they are the worst violators of traffic rules out there. Hypocrites.

So when the Makati enforcer flagged me I decided to do the right thing and not give a bribe, because I am better than those Dutertard assholes.

The enforcer's name was Fidel de Lima. He was wearing a yellow uniform. I asked him when can I get my license back and he said I can go to Makati City Hall by the following Tuesday to claim it. It was a Saturday so I only had to be license-free for two more days. Besides, the ticket he issues can act as a license until the following Friday.

The ticket I was issued.

So here's where everything went to shit:

On Tuesday, I headed to Makati City Hall to get my license. I got to the traffic violations office early so I still have the afternoon for work. However, the personnel at the that office told me that my license was not there.

I was confused at first. The traffic enforcer said I can already get the license on Tuesday, so why didn't he surrender it to their office? The personnel told me I can wait for the afternoon or just return on another day. He gave me their landline number so I can call them before going back.

Because I believe in efficiency, I decided to wait until after lunch so that I don't waste my Uber credits when I go back to Makati on another day. I stayed in a nearby 7-Eleven for a while, playing games on my iPad.

I came back to the traffic violations office after lunch. The personnel was surprised to see me and chided me for not calling before heading back. I got a little pissed at that point, but I had no other choice but to leave.

The traffic violations office in Makati.

The election was happening on that following Monday, and I am a registered voter in my old province so I need my license so I can drive to vote. Yes, the ticket can be used in place of the license but it is only applicable inside Metro Manila.

This is why I did not give up on following up. I called twice a day, morning and afternoon, on Wednesday and Thursday. The license still wasn't there.

Friday was a red alert day because the ticket was about to expire then. I called in the morning, and because the license still was not there, they promised to find the enforcer, De Lima, presumably to take my license from his irresponsibly unbreakable grip. And yet, I called them again before lunch and they said they were not able to contact him.

They told me that I should still go to their office nonetheless so they can mark my ticket with an exception. They said this is the best option I can get.

My second visit to the traffic violations office was eye-opening. Apparently, I was not the only driver that  had this problem because I witnessed several drivers there who were much angrier than I. I talked to this senior dad who had his license on hold for nearly two weeks already. He said he did not understand how this can happen because enforcers are supposed to surrender all the licenses they confiscated. Do they take the licenses home instead? Why?

I had the same questions.

Then the traffic personnels ushered me into their office. One of them apologized because the enforcer, supposedly, took an extended sick leave. Presumably. That still does not explain why my license was still with him.

After that, they extended my ticket to about a week after elections. The extension was just ink penned behind the ticket, with an official signature. 

Then the energy of the elections (I commuted to the voting precinct) made me forget about my license altogether, so I wasn't able to follow up until the next Friday. I truly forgot about it until my mom reprimanded me for not asking about my license sooner.

And yes, I was able to claim my license that Friday, two weeks after it was confiscated. I paid 500 for the violation.

The unanswered questions remained unanswered. Why was my license gone for so long? What did the enforcer do with it? Was he ever reprimanded? Is this a rare case, or is it more frequent than I think?

If this is a frequent matter, the powers-that-be in Makati should do something about it. Makati advertises itself as a red-tape free city, but I experienced another thing altogether. Yes, you can claim your license in about five minutes, but that does not matter if enforcers do not follow procedure. Heads should roll.