FOR TOO LONG, road safety in the Philippines has been treated with a reactive mindset — crackdowns after a tragic crash, checkpoints after mounting fatalities, and public outcry only when deaths make headlines. But in Iloilo Province, there are signs of a much-needed shift: from punishment to prevention, from episodic enforcement to long-term education.
As reported by this paper recently, the provincial government’s proposal to conduct road safety lectures and free theoretical driving seminars in public high schools for the School Year 2025–2026 marks a change in strategy. Spearheaded by the Provincial Task Force on Road Safety (PTFRS), the initiative seeks to engage young people — particularly junior and senior high school students — as early as possible in shaping responsible road behavior.
This move is both timely and necessary. The latest data from the Iloilo Provincial Police Office (IPPO) shows that from January 1 to March 24 of this year alone, the province recorded 1,082 vehicular crashes, with 42 deaths. In 2024, that number reached over 3,000 incidents, leading to 123 fatalities and more than 1,200 injuries. The top culprit? Reckless driving.
It is no longer enough to simply punish violators after the fact. Prevention must now take precedence — and prevention means education, community involvement, and data-driven policy. The involvement of the Department of Education, Land Transportation Office, and the Provincial Health Office in this inter-agency effort is encouraging. It reflects an understanding that road safety is not just a law enforcement issue, but a public health, behavioral, and cultural one.
However, good intentions must be matched by clear implementation. The road safety lectures and seminars must not be token efforts or pilot activities lost in the shuffle of academic schedules. There must be specific targets: How many schools? How many students per batch? How will effectiveness be measured? Will post-program crash rates among the target age groups be tracked?
Likewise, municipalities identified as accident hotspots should not only receive lectures — they should see improvements in infrastructure, signage, lighting, and enforcement patterns. Road safety must be treated like any other serious public policy concern: with timelines, metrics, and regular evaluation.
The move from reactive to proactive is a welcome turn. But to truly save lives, Iloilo’s road safety strategy must not only change direction — it must stay the course with discipline, data, and accountability.
