Child car seat law: House inquiry set

MANILA, Philippines — The House committee on transportation will look into the implementation of the child car seat law and the operation of Private Motor Vehicle Inspection Centers (PMVICs).

Rep. Edgar Mary Sarmiento said on Thursday that his committee would conduct a hearing on Feb. 10 even as he urged the government to defer the implementation of the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act, or Republic Act No. 11229.

Signed into law by the President on Feb. 22, 2019, RA 11229 should have taken effect on Feb. 2 this year until transport officials agreed to put it on hold while the Land Transportation Office (LTO) conducts an information campaign for three to six months before strictly enforcing it.

In a statement, ACT-CIS Rep. Jocelyn Tulfo urged the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and LTO to suspend RA 11229’s implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for at least a year or until the country was no longer under a state of national public health emergency.

“It is quite clear that the DOTr and the LTO did not perform all the due diligence necessary,” she said. “Did they conduct public hearings prior to approval of the IRR? Apparently, they did not. The Administrative Code of 1987 requires the executive branches of government to conduct public hearings in their exercise of the rule-making powers.”

‘Policies are like cars’

Earlier, Senate Pro Tempore Ralph Recto also criticized the LTO for imposing new policies without prior consultation in the middle of a pandemic and further adding to the burden of already struggling Filipinos.

“The problem is that the LTO keeps running its programs at full speed without even blowing its horn. Policies are like cars—they should be road tested and subjected to independent review,” Recto said on Wednesday.

His statement was in reaction to public criticism of the LTO over RA 11229 and the Motor Vehicle Inspection System (MVIS).

Senate Resolution No. 634 filed by Sen. Grace Poe on Wednesday called for an inquiry into the MVIS, and the operations of PMVICs where motorists now have to pay more than double their usual annual vehicle registration fees.

Using a series of driving references, Recto cited a number of LTO policies it had laid down even without consulting concerned sectors, only to be withdrawn following public outcry.

“It has been on a stop-and-go motion on the imposition of fines in the violations on the use of face shields in private vehicles, only to be rebuked that this is ‘swerving’ from the rules set by the IATF,” he said, referring to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases.

Recto urged the agency to “temper [its regulatory power] with compassion.” “Yes, bad driving must be punished, and car ownership and operation incur licensing expenses, but the affordability quotient must be studied in every fee and fine imposed,” he said.

In filing SR 634, Poe wanted to look into the implementation of issuances by DOTr and LTO which reportedly entail higher vehicle registration fees, even during the pandemic. With a report from Melvin Gascon