MMDA launches database for motorists caught by ‘no contact policy’

MANILA, Philippines - The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) will launch on Tuesday (May 3) a database for motorists who think they may have been caught by the agency’s “no-contact apprehension policy.”

MMDA chairman Emerson Carlos said the database is in line with the government’s bid to promote transparency.

By using the “Na-HuliCam Ka Ba?” database, motorists will be able to verify whether they have committed a traffic violation through a Google spreadsheet that can be viewed but cannot be edited. The spreadsheet will contain an updated list of vehicles tagged by the MMDA’s closed circuit television cameras (CCTVs).

According to the MMDA, the spreadsheet data will specifically indicate the plate number of the vehicle tagged, its location, date, time when traffic violation was committed; and the action taken by the MMDA.

Carlos said the agency has taken the initiative to publish the database online in response to the popular netizens’ demand to provide motorists with an easy and efficient way to verify if they have been cited for a traffic violation.

Carlos said that the online database will facilitate the verification process by motorists on the traffic violations and assuage their fears that they could have been wrongly cited for traffic infractions.

The MMDA’s “no-contact apprehension policy” was revived during the term of former MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino to apprehend over-speeding vehicles along major thoroughfares in the metropolis, including Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City.  

The current MMDA leadership re-implemented it last April 15, giving the motorists a chance to contest the traffic citation within seven days after receipt of a notice from the agency.  

The MMDA said the “no-contact traffic apprehension policy” aims to instill discipline among drivers on the road and for the latter to abide by the traffic rules and regulations. 

It also aims to prevent corruption among traffic enforcers and help ease traffic buildup as physical contact between traffic personnel and erring drivers would be lessened.

More than 4,000 violations have so far been recorded since the no-contact apprehension scheme was re-launched.