MANILA, Dec. 14 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered all government agencies to shun luxury vehicles and stick to cars that are "cost effective, fuel-efficient and environment-friendly" to show that the administration is prudent in the use of public funds.
On last Monday, Duterte signed Administrative Order (AO) 14 that details the rules on the acquisition of government motor vehicles and adopting a centralized system of procurement.
AO 14 was issued to prohibit the acquisition and use of luxury vehicles in all national government agencies, including government-owned or government-controlled corporations, government financial institutions and state universities and colleges, as well as local government units.
"(AO 14) was promulgated to ensure that the acquisition of government motor vehicles is guided by the principles of functional suitability, affordability and practicability, in keeping with the highest standards of parsimony and efficiency in public spending," the AO read.
Meanwhile, the order does not cover the vehicles used for security for the president and vice president, vehicles donated to the government by foreign governments or multilateral institutions, vehicles used by visiting foreign dignitaries and vehicles acquired using funds from existing official development assistance programs.
Moreover, the AO ordered all government offices to "dedicate a percentage of their vehicular requirement to the purchase of motor vehicles using alternative fuel types such as biofuels, flexible-fuel, natural gas, and solar and electric power."
