Statement of the 5 Motorcycle Dealership

Last February 5, 2021, a Senate Blue Ribbon Committee meeting chaired by Senator Gordon was held to discuss the implementation of RA 11235 (Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act). Somewhere along the way, the discussion which was supposedly focused on the delayed distribution of plate numbers by the LTO, led to allegations of so called unethical practices of our corporations. The allegations pertain to alleged irregular repossession practices, high interest rates, withholding the OR/CR, insurance, and plate numbers from our customers. At the outset, we categorically deny these allegations. Though we are confused as to how these allegations pertain to the implementation of RA 11235 (Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act), we are nevertheless prepared to answer questions from the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee.

We are appalled at such allegations as they could not be further from the truth. The motorcycle industry is highly competitive with over a hundred dealerships nationwide vying for customer patronage and loyalty. It would be to our detriment to treat our customers poorly by withholding registrations, plate numbers and insurance from them. We would have lost the loyalty of all of our customers to our competitors had we done all of the above. We would have also been inundated with complaints and subject to notices of violation as well as lawsuits from government entities had we ascribed to such practices. The mentioned interest rates are also far from the truth. In fact we pride ourselves to be the most affordable in the market. Contrary to what has been said, we are not an oligarchy – we are separately owned and managed. In fact, we are extremely competitive with each other. The motorcycle industry is a free market, and we never forced any of our customers to buy their motorcycle under installment only from us. They are free to get financing through banks, cooperatives, and the like. Lastly, it is also important to note that all 5 corporations operate at a nationwide scale with decades of experience. We would not last this long in the industry had we been unethical and horrible to our customers.

We believe that the Committee has been misled and misinformed regarding these practices. We believe these allegations stem from the false claims of the Regional Director of LTO Region VII, Mr. Victor Caindec, who has not stopped harassing our corporations since January 2020 and has been repeatedly making the exact same claims as mentioned during the Senate Committee Hearing. These claims also seem to serve as his way to divert the Committee’s attention from the corrupt practices of his office, which should be the very subject of investigation by the Blue Ribbon Committee, as it is tasked to look into the practices and accountability of public officials.

It must be made clear that our relationship and dealings with RD Victor Caindec greatly deteriorated upon our outright refusal to pay his ask of P500 per unit “SOP” or under the table. To put it simply, he would not allow LTO Region 7 personnel to process the registration of our customers unless we pay P500 under the table money. When all five of our companies collectively refused, we were then subjected to what would be tantamount to acts of harassment by the personnel of the Region VII LTO Office starting December 2019.