Sen. Grace Poe—Voltaire F. Domingo/Senate Social Media Unit
MANILA, Philippines—The chair of the Senate public services committee urged the Department of Transportation (DOTr) on Friday (March 5) to talk with transport groups on how to implement the government’s Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP), which continues to draw protests from jeepney drivers and operators.
Sen. Grace Poe made the suggestion after the Supreme Court dismissed a petition against the PUVMP filed by the group Bayyo Association Inc. and its leader, Anselmo Perweg. The petitioners challenged the program’s legality.
READ: SC dismisses ‘procedurally infirm’ petition vs PUV modernization
“We respect the decision of the high court, as well as the right of the jeepney groups to file their planned appeal,” Poe said in a statement.
“As the legal procedure presses on, we expect intensified efforts from the Department of Transportation to dialogue with transport groups to address issues on implementation,” she added
The senator also said the DOTr should by this time already have clear guidelines, routes and other “critical matters” for a smooth rollout of the PUVMP.
READ: Transport group to appeal high court ruling vs PUVMP
“At stake is not just the livelihood of thousands of drivers, but the safety and convenience of our commuters in this modernization being pushed by the government,” she said.
Poe also urged implementing agencies to present evidence that the program’s benefits outweigh the risks.
In a 20-page decision made public on Wednesday (March 6), the high court stated that the petitioners “do not possess the requisite legal standing to file this suit.”
The court said the certificate of registration at the Securities and Exchange Commission presented by the petitioners “does not establish that its members are, indeed, PUJ operators and drivers.”
The SC noted that Bayyo did not submit any proof supporting its claim that it is a legitimate association of jeepney drivers and operators.
It added that Bayyo did not have an article of incorporation and a set of by-laws “or any other competent proof” that it really represented drivers and operators.
“The Court cannot ascertain its legal standing as an association of PUJ operators and drivers,” the SC said in its ruling.
“Even if such were not the case, Bayyo still failed to establish who its members are and that it has been duly authorized by said members to institute the petition,” the ruling read.
The SC added that the group disregarded the doctrine of hierarchy of courts, which required that legal means must first be exhausted in lower courts before these are elevated to the SC.
Sonny Matula, Federation of Free Workers president, said Bayyo and Perweg would file a motion for reconsideration.