00:00When there's an amatz, there's an awat.
00:03That's what a congressman reminded the drivers in the middle of the left-right Christmas party today.
00:09He called it a new initiative that was put on camera so that anti-drunk driving in the country will be more effective.
00:16That's what Mela Lesmuras wrote.
00:21Eduardo has been a bus driver in Quezon City for 8 years.
00:25He says that sometimes he doesn't even get into an accident while traveling.
00:29And he's always careful so that this won't happen again.
00:33Before I travel, I check all my needs.
00:37Including myself.
00:39And I always follow my traffic laws.
00:42Here in the camera, the new initiative was put on camera by ACT-Bayan Party List Representative Percy Sandania
00:48for the safety of travelers, especially during the holiday season.
00:53This is part of House Bill 11220 or Iwas Amatz Iwas Aksidente Bill
00:58that paves the way for more strict road protocols for drivers who drink alcohol.
01:04Under the new initiative, a breathalyzer test will be carried out
01:09to determine if the driver is drunk and if his metrics will be stricter.
01:15According to Sandania, it's important to stricter road rules.
01:20According to the 2015-2019 road crashes data,
01:25more than 5,000 out of almost 19,000 were alcohol-related.
01:30According to our current laws in RA 10586, the Anti-Drunk and Drunk Driving Act of 2013,
01:39the emphasis is on drunk driving.
01:42But we saw that it's not necessary to be drunk to be impaired as a driver.
01:49So we're saying that we need to lower the threshold in terms of alcohol consumption.
01:55Even if it's tipsy, it should be prohibited.
01:58In the eyes of commuters, will they also favor this new initiative?
02:03So that there won't be accidents.
02:05To stop.
02:07And maybe drugs.
02:09We don't know.
02:11Congressman Sandania's message to the public during this time of Christmas.
02:16If there's a chance,
02:19because the best gift we can give to our families
02:23is that we can go home alive and safe.
02:26A safe Christmas for all of us.
02:28Melales Moras for Pambansang TV in Bagong, Philippines.
