Apart from direct assault charges filed by the Metro Manila Development Authority and being bullied online, Robert Blair Carabuena has a bigger problem.
Carabuena, the motorist who was caught on video hitting traffic enforcer Saturnino "Sonny" Fabros, has been suspended from work Thursday. On top of that, he might also just lose his driver's license.
Cigarette maker Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Corp. (PMFTC) said it has suspended its executive, "pending the outcome of the investigation."
It noted, however, that Carabuena was "on his personal time and not on duty for the company at the time."
A video of Carabuena mauling traffic enforcer Saturnino Fabros has been spreading through social networking sites since Tuesday.
Fabros said he told Carabuena off for making a wrong turn near Tandang Sora in Quezon City.
"PMFTC reiterates that it does not condone inappropriate conduct by any of our employees," the company said.
The suspension came a day after a petition dubbed "Robert Blair Carabuena is Bad for your Corporate Health", which urges PMFTC to fire Carabuena, made rounds online.
"[Carabuena] has now also become the poster boy of Philip Morris International (PMI). His behavior is a disservice to the corporate image of PMI and the global goodwill it has earned all these years. We call on PMI to immediately act on this unforgivable incident and accordingly fire him," the petition said.
Meanwhile, MMDA already asked the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to revoke Carbuena's license, Yves Gonzales, head of the MMDA traffic disclipline office told Yahoo! Southeast Asia in a phone interview.
"MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino has drafted a letter to LTO Assistant Secretary Virginia Santos, asking them to look into the case and if possible revoke the license," Gonzales said.
The LTO also confirmed that licenses may be revoked under certain grounds.
"Pwede po talagang i-revoke ang license, kung halimbawa gumamit ka ng sasakyan na ginamit sa krimen (Licenses may indeed be revoked, such as in cases when motorists use vehicles identified in criminal cases)," Daisy Jacobo, chief of LTO's traffic safety division.
Tolentino on Wednesday said "abusive and arrogant motorists like him (Carabuena), who obviously do not have serious regard to the rule of law, have no right to be in the road in the first place."
