Gordon welcomes PNP directive to curb riding-in-tandem crimes

Re-electionist Senator Richard J. Gordon today welcomed President Duterte's directive to the Philippine National Police (PNP) to curb the recent spike in crimes involving motorcycle-bound criminals, colloquially known as the "riding-in-tandem."

Gordon, author of Republic Act (RA) 11235 or the Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act, said the directive issued to the PNP Chief Dionardo Carlos would further shed light on the unabated commission of crimes by the riding-in-tandem.

"I welcome the President's decision in directing the PNP to shed light into these unsolved crimes involving riding-in-tandem criminals. Tracking down the root cause of these crimes can significantly minimize these crimes," he said.

"Hanggang ngayon ay hindi pa rin natin nasisilayan ang kapangyarihan ng batas na ipinasa natin, dahil ito ay lubos na makakatulong sa pagkabawas ng krimen na ginagawa ng mga nakasakay sa motorsiklo," he added.

During his recent public address, Duterte has ordered PNP Chief Carlos to submit to him a report on robbery incidents involving the riding-in-tandem, citing the recent uptick in cases.

In response, Carlos acceded to the Chief Executive's order and said the PNP would release a report on the incidents soon.

According to PNP data, about 19,277 crimes were committed involving the riding in tandem from 2016 to January 2021, of which 7,123 are murder cases.

From January 1 to December 28, 2021, there had been 173 killed, 30 hurt, and two escaping unharmed, based on the data collated by Sen. Gordon's office.

With the recent order of President Duterte, Gordon called on the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to take swift action in implementing the law to protect the public, including motorcycle owners and riders, against being victims of crimes.

"If we properly implement this law, we can reduce the number of killings by being able to immediately report the perpetrators' readable plate numbers via an app, which will be acted upon by the Joint Operations Center," he said.

"The opening of this command center would greatly help the PNP in its investigation, as cases continue to pile up every day. Having important pieces of information already gives you one step ahead towards attaining justice," he added.

As chairman of the Senate blue ribbon committee, it may be recalled that Gordon has lashed out at the LTO for its failure to implement the law, which paved the way for criminals to liberally kill and steal.

To date, there remains to be a massive backlog in the issuance of plate numbers, along with the continued condonation of a system that disadvantages motorcycle owners who fail to pay their monthly dues.