Philippines’ MANILA Following allegations of corruption, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. suspended Teofilo Guadiz III, the head of the LTFRB.
The Presidential Communications Office issued a statement saying that he had ordered Guadiz’s suspension on Monday.
An earlier news conference by transportation company MANIBELA included Jeffrey Tumbado, a former executive assistant to Guadiz, who claimed to have “exposed” the agency’s alleged corruption.
MANIBELA chair Mar Valbuena proposed a statewide transport strike beginning on Monday, October 16, in opposition to the suspected wrongdoing.
Jaime Bautista, the secretary of transportation, said on Monday that an investigation into the accusations against Guadiz is still ongoing. He claimed that the LTFRB chief who was suspended had already been told to address the accusations leveled against him.
“We [have] already started looking into the accusations made against the LTFRB. While investigating the alleged irregularities involving [Chairman Guadiz], we also sent Guadiz with a notice to explain so that he could respond to the charges, Bautista added.
“The president has directed the quick examination of this incident because he will not accept any misconduct in his administration. He vigorously rejects deceit and fraud in public service,” the statement said.
