DOTr cracks down on online license fixers, non-compliant driving schools
Credit to Author: Dominique Nicole Flores| Date: Thu, 22 May 2025 16:54:00 +0800
MANILA, Philippines — After suspending more than a hundred driving schools over the past two weeks, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said it now plans to simplify the process of obtaining a driver’s license.
Before tendering his resignation, DOTr Secretary Vince Dizon said that cracking down on fraudulent service providers and non-compliant driving schools is not enough.
He said the government must also make it easier for Filipinos to get a license through legitimate means.
The current system, he added, must be reformed to prevent corruption and encourage applicants to go through proper channels.
“Kailangan ding ayusin ng gobyerno 'yung sistema. Kailangan natin pasimplehin. Kailangan natin pabilisin,” Dizon said at a press conference on Thursday, May 22.
(The government also needs to fix the system. We need to simplify it. We need to speed it up.)
He added that redundant steps and excessive requirements contribute to the rise of fixers and under-the-table schemes.
Dizon warned that the more complicated the process becomes, the more people are pushed to seek illegitimate shortcuts.
“So gagawin ang gobyerno ang parte 'yan. Is-streamline natin. Papasimplehin natin ang mga proseso,” he added. (So the government will do that part. We will streamline it. We will simplify the processes.)
The DOTr said it remains committed to going after individuals and institutions — including clinics, testing centers, and driving schools — that exploit Filipinos and violate protocols.
“Magcucut down din tayo dito sa mga gantong klaseng mga tao na pinagkakakitaan at inaabuso yung mga kababayan natin,” Dizon said. (We will also crack down on these kinds of people who profit from and abuse fellow Filipinos.)
This comes after the DOTr, in coordination with the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG), uncovered several “fixers” offering driver's license services online.
Dizon said these fixers no longer linger outside Land Transportation Office (LTO) branches but now promote their services on platforms like Facebook.
Some sellers, he added, offer to process their licenses for P1,000 or more, even to individuals who have never learned how to drive.
“'Yan driver na yan pag nakakuha ng lisensya at hindi marunong magmaneho, most likely makakadisgrasya pa yan. Kaya this is no joke,” Dizon stressed.
(That driver, if he gets a license and doesn't know how to drive, will most likely have an accident. So this is no joke.)
He warned that government personnel involved in such schemes would be dismissed and face criminal charges.
“Seryoso kami rito. Hindi kami titigil. Lahat ng mga magpopost ng ganito mga online scammer na ganito ay huhulihin natin at papakulong natin,” Dizon said.
(We are serious about this. We will not stop. We will catch all those who post like this, all those online scammers like this, and we will put them in jail.)
LTO Chief Vigor Mendoza II echoed the warning, saying it isn’t difficult to trace online scammers.
He also cautioned both sellers and buyers that they could face disqualification from renewing or applying for a legitimate license, on top of charges for falsifying public documents. It warrants an offense punishable by up to 12 years in prison.
Last week, the PNP-ACG arrested a female fixer in Valenzuela City for producing fake driver's licenses and PWD IDs, as part of its ongoing cyber patrol efforts.