Manila, May 14 -- Land Transportation Office (LTO) chief Assistant Secretary Markus Lacanilao has sacked 56 employees of the agency in his first six months as part of a crackdown against corruption in the agency.

In a statement on Thursday, Lacanilao said these 56 individuals have been charged with administrative cases such as "grave misconduct, serious dishonesty, gross neglect of duty, extortion, falsification of official documents," and several other violations that affect the integrity of the LTO and its duty to provide service to the public.

"Walang puwang sa LTO ang katiwalian, kapabayaan, at pang-aabuso sa kapangyarihan. Sinuman ang mapatunayang lumalabag sa batas at sa tiwala ng taumbayan ay mananagot anuman ang kanilang posisyo...