₱13.3 billion is too much money to simply ignore. For ordinary motorists, every peso matters. So when the Ombudsman says billions of pesos in computer fees were collected from 2019 to 2025, the public deserves a clear explanation.
Facing the Ombudsman’s six-month preventive suspension are former Land Transportation Office chiefs Vigor Mendoza II and Teofilo Guadiz III, who now hold other government positions.
Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla ordered their suspension while an administrative case for Grave Misconduct and Conduct Prejudicial to the Best Interest of the Service is being heard.
According to the Ombudsman, the case involves the continued use of the old STRADCOM-operated LTO information technology system even after the government had accepted its replacement, the Land Transportation Management System or LTMS.
The Commission on Audit, as cited in the Ombudsman’s order, found that the parallel use of the two systems resulted in ₱13.379 billion in computer fees, creating an additional burden on motorists and other transacting citizens.
The Ombudsman said Guadiz, during his 2022 term as LTO chief, pushed for continued use of the old IT system. Mendoza, during his term in 2023, allegedly issued memoranda that effectively institutionalized its parallel use with LTMS.
In January 2025, Mendoza also directed PUV registration renewals to be processed through the old system.
To be fair, preventive suspension is not a final finding of guilt. Mendoza and Guadiz remain entitled to due process, and the administrative case must still be resolved.
But the questions are unavoidable. Why was the old system allowed to continue? Why were motorists still paying computer fees when LTMS was already in place?
And the biggest question: WHERE DID THE ₱13.3 BILLION GO?
This is taxpayers’ and motorists’ money. The public deserves answers. And if wrongdoing is proven, those responsible must be held accountable.
