LTO Eyes License Suspension for Driver in Bukidnon Truck Mishap Involving Student Interns

Police officers, responders, and volunteers assist injured student interns along the Lumbo–Dologon national highway after an overloaded Elf truck carrying about 50 Davao Oriental State University (DOrSU) interns suffered a drop-side failure, causing dozens of passengers riding at the back to fall onto the road on the rainy evening of July 15. PHOTO BY REYU UNDRAY MARAMAG, Bukidnon — A truck driver who gave about 50 student interns a ride on a rainy night out of compassion may lose his driver’s license and face criminal charges after the overloaded vehicle figured in an accident that left several students injured, the Land Transportation Office (LTO) said Friday. Salome M. Navarro, district head of the LTO in Maramag, said the agency has secured the police report and blotter from the Maramag Municipal Police Station to begin administrative proceedings against the driver. She said the LTO Regional Office is expected to issue a show-cause order, which could result in the suspension of the driver’s license pending the outcome of the investigation. Police said the driver accommodated around 50 student interns from Davao Oriental State University (DOrSU) after they finished their on-the-job training at the Central Mindanao University (CMU) Dairy Farm and were heading to their boarding house in Maramag. With heavy rain and limited public transportation, the students reportedly asked for a ride, which the driver granted. What began as an act of compassion, however, turned tragic when the overloaded Elf truck’s unsecured drop-side suddenly gave way while traveling along the Lumbo–Dologon national highway, throwing dozens of students riding at the back onto the road. Authorities said the driver’s good intentions do not exempt him from liability, stressing that he remains legally responsible for the safety of all passengers aboard his vehicle. Meanwhile, DOrSU President Dr. Roy G. Ponse, who remains in Bukidnon with university officials and parents, said in a social media update that five of the nine students initially hospitalized have already been discharged, while three are in stable condition and awaiting medical clearance. One student remains in critical condition. Ponse also corrected misinformation circulating online, saying the students were traveling from their OJT site to their boarding house in Maramag, not from the CMU campus, when they accepted the hitchhike because of the bad weather and the lack of available transportation. Davao Oriental Gov. Nelson Dayanghirang, together with Provincial Hospital Chief Dr. Reden Bersaldo, facilitated the transfer of the critically injured student from the Bukidnon Provincial Hospital in Maramag to the Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC) in Davao City via a high-care ambulance. Following the incident, Navarro said the LTO will intensify roadside inspections and crack down on the illegal transport of passengers in cargo vehicles. She also urged students to avoid hitching rides on open trucks and appealed to drivers not to accommodate passengers in such vehicles, emphasizing that public safety must always come first, even in times of emergency. /jpv