Aware of the hazards children face every day while on the road, Mayor Joseph Estrada has formed a special unit of women traffic enforcers to man traffic and assist school children in Manila’s 72 public elementary schools.
Estrada said these “mommy traffic enforcers” would be deployed outside school grounds with only one primary mission: To help the school children get to school or to their homes safely.
“Our children, the future of our nation, are exposed to road hazards and risks while they go to and from their schools so we thought of tapping the mothers to assist them,” he said.
Estrada, quoting a report from the World Health Organization, said at least 96 children die every day due to road accidents in the Philippines, making it the second most common type of accident in the country for children aged 5-12.
“We can now feel secured knowing that there are ‘mommies’ out there taking care of the safety our school children, their own children,” Estrada said.
“With their motherly love, we are sure they will do their duties with all their heart,” he added.
Dennis Alcoreza, head of the Manila Traffic and Parking Bureau, said an initial batch of 144 “mommy traffic enforcers” will be trained as auxiliary traffic aides, with at least two women enforcers to be deployed in each of the 72 public elementary schools in the city.
“They will undergo basic traffic management and road safety training, focusing on protecting the school children from any possible road accidents. Basically, aalalayan lang ‘yung mga bata na tumawid ,sumakay o bumaba ng sasakyan,” Alcoreza said.
Preferably, the mommy traffic enforcer will be fielded in the school where her own child is enrolled, he added.