'We're waiting for the full turnover of the contract so we can do more enhancements so we can service the public better,' says Land Transportation Office chief Vigor Mendoza II

MANILA, Philippines – The Land Transportation Office (LTO) hopes to finally make full use of its new information technology (IT) system this 2024.

The transition to using the Land Transport Management System (LTMS) by German firm Dermalog took six years. LTO chief Vigor Mendoza II said they are working on fixing issues that motorists dealt with in the old system, which include miscomputation of penalties and other registration mishaps.

“We want to do it this year. We want to complete the full utilization of LTMS this year,” Mendoza said on Friday, August 2.

“I think we’ve gotten enough practice, we’ve given ourselves enough time. We will be requesting more training for our personnel if needed and, hopefully, even those in BARMM (Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao), we can include them in LTMS,” he added in a mix of English and Filipino.

The LTO currently uses two systems to manage data: first, a system by Stradcom Corporation, and another, through a joint venture led by Dermalog. Stradcom has managed the agency’s IT system since the late 1990s and has been part of a phase-out program since 2016.

There have been reports on the LTO’s old system being susceptible to roadworthiness test results being tampered with, compared with the more secure LTMS. (READ: LTO’s old IT system enables fraud, and motorists pay more for it too)

Meanwhile, Dermalog’s system has actually been set up since July 2022 in majority of LTO offices (371 out of 387).

Having two systems led to issues in mismatched registration data — since the two existing systems do not sync — and even provided a loophole for those smuggling vehicles into the country.

For instance, LTMS data showed that only 333,152 vehicles were registered from January to September 2023. However, LTO’s annual report noted that 1,839,164 new motor vehicles were registered during the same period. This means that over 1.5 million motorists who registered their vehicles under the old IT system may have a hard time when they renew their registration since it was not made under the LTMS.

The LTO is looking forward to utilizing the new system, which would put all motorists’ data into one database.

“We’re waiting for the full turnover of the contract so we can do more enhancements so we can service the public better,” Mendoza said. – Rappler.com