Mind the Gap Communications

MANILA (2020 November 30) - Celebrity mom Jolina Magdangal is appealing to parents to use car seats when traveling with their children, to help stem the still-high number of road incidents in pandemic-ridden 2020.  “ Para sa isang magulang na katulad ko, ano pa ba ang mas mahalaga kundi ang safety ng mga anak natin at mahal sa buhay? (For a parent like me, what could be more important than the safety of our children and loved ones?),” said Jolina in a recent interview , during which she calls for more vigilance among parents when it comes to keeping children safe on the road.  

Typhoon Ulysses (international name Vamco), the deadliest of the typhoons of 2020 thus far, posted a death toll of 67, many due to heavy flooding from the Marikina and Cagayan rivers. Two other typhoons, Quinta (Molave) and Rolly (Goni), posted 27 and 25 casualties, respectively. That's a total of 119 deaths this typhoon season, which is not good at all. But did you know that there have been 118 fatal road incidents in the Philippines since mid-March? One would expect that number to be close to zero during the COVID-19 lockdowns when fewer people were on the road, but it isn't.   Atty. Tony Salvador, a road advocate from Ideals, Inc. , tells us more during this episode of news podcast Teka Teka, a program of PumaPodcast. Atty. Salvador also talks about RA 11229, or the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act, which now requires the use of child car restraints in the Philippines. Segment starts at the 6:34 mark: 

There is now a law requiring the use of car seats (also known as child restraint systems or CRS) in the Philippines, and it will be implemented beginning February 2021. But how do we prepare for the rollout? And are child car seats absolutely necessary? Did it have to become a law? Can't I just hold my child in the car? Car seats are a huge added expense. Yes, we are parents, too. We've asked those questions as well. See what else parents have to say. Buckle up your treasures!  is a webinar that sought to make Filipinos—parents and guardian of children, especially—aware of the new law, RA 11229, or the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act, and get answers to their questions.  In simple and easy-to-understand language and visuals, we are taught about RA 11229 and the life-saving science behind car seat use by Atty. Sophia San Luis (ImagineLaw) and Mr. Roberto Valera (Land Transportation Office); and child car seat accreditation and regulations by Engr. Isaiah Dale Lim (Department

MANILA, Philippines (2020 November 16) - As if typhoons do not represent enough devastation already, they now come with the extra threat of COVID-19 with every misstep. But a look at the numbers tells us that another old menace—road crashes— claimed nearly many lives as the biggest storms of 2020 have, despite people staying inside more these past months.