Andaya accepts Zubiri call to strengthen Road Board abolition bill

House Majority Leader Rolando Andaya Jr. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — House Majority Leader Rolando Andaya Jr. has accepted Senate Majority Leader Miguel Zubiri’s call to re-convene the bicameral committee to further strengthen the abolition of the controversial Road Board.

“We are positively responding to Senator Zubiri’s call that the Senate and the House meet in  conference  to hammer out a better – and genuine  –  Road Board abolition bill,” Andaya said in a statement on Sunday.

Andaya said Saturday that their chamber would heed President Duterte’s call to abolish the Road Board, which manages the road user’s tax or the motor vehicle user’s charge (MVUC).

READ: Finally, House accepts abolition of Road Board

Andaya noted that they would designate members for the House’s bicameral conference committee on Jan. 14, next year.

“On the part of the House, we will designate the members of our contingent to the  bicameral conference committee on our first session day next year, on January 14,” he said.

As the House approved the dissolution of the agency, Andaya said he did not want to transfer the agency’s funds to the three secretaries in the “Three Road Kings,” who would spend the “tax at will.”

“The House advocates the 100-percent dismantling of the Road Board. We do not want its powers to  be merely transferred  to three secretaries who will in effect be Three Road Kings who can spend the MVUC at will,” Andaya said.

Andaya also ensured that the revenue from the road user’s tax may be used in the national funds as it was believed to be lacking in transparency.

“We will ensure that all proceeds from the MVUC form part of the General Fund. We want to strip MVUC collections of its status as a hidden off-budget item that will be spent by one person in an untransparent way,” Andaya said.

“We will ensure that the law will provide that every centavo taken from the motorists will be spent for their relief and benefit. Non-road use activities like garbage collection would have to be stricken off the spending menu,” he added.