President Noynoy Aquino may have arrived late at a few public functions because he refuses to use a wang-wang (a siren or blinker) but his "leadership by example" has been paying off, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) told dzBB radio, as reported by GMANews.tv.
MMDA General Manager Roberto Nacianceno told dzBB radio in Filipino, "There are fewer cases of vehicles inappropriately using sirens and going against the flow of traffic... We do not have to go after violators that much."
Violators have also run out of excuses, Nacianceno said. He said traffic enforcers could tell motorists, who drop names or flash calling cards of powerful personalities, that the President himself follows traffic rules.
Aquino first announced his No Wang-wang policy at his speech during the presidential inauguration on June 30 at the Quirino Grandstand. "Walang wang-wang, walang counterflow, walang tong," he said, earning loud cheers from the crowd. His no wang-wang policy has actually been a law for the past 37 years under Presidential Decree 96.
