CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga, October 29, 2012-Over a hundred riders with Import Commodity Clearance (ICC)-marked helmets held a motorcade around the City of San Fernando on Friday in a bid to encourage the public to patronize quality motor gears.
The event was part of the concluding activity of the 2012 Consumer Welfare Month (CWM) celebration in Central Luzon which carried the theme “Get Organized. Be Heard. Be Empowered.”
Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Regional Information Officer Wilfred Carbonell said “this year’s CWM celebration, which our agency is hosting, aims to be an avenue in the interaction among consumers, retailers and government institutions on issues relative to the quality of construction materials and motorcycle helmets.”
Carbonell added that “Section 6 of Republic Act 10054 otherwise known as the Motorcycle Helmet Act of 2009 mandates DTI to be the lead determinant in the quality of helmets out in the market.”
Under the law, all riders including the backriders are obliged to wear ICC-marked helmets in order to curb the rising number of deaths in motorcycle accidents that is frequently caused by the absence or substandard protective gears.
RA 10054 does not cover tricycles and other similar modes of transportation such as pedicab.
Based from the law’s Implementing Rules and Regulations that was released recently, all helmets to be sold beginning 2012 must bear the ICC mark.
Carbonell likewise said “for motorcycle riders whose helmets were purchased prior to 2012, they are required to go to the nearest DTI office to obtain the ICC sticker.”
DTI will be processing ICC sticker applications for free until December, 2012.
Land Transportation Office will begin to implement the new measure on January, 2013 where stiffer penalties await violators. (Carlo Lorenzo J. Datu)
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