Consumer group asks SC to declare gov’t terminal system unconstitutional

Ortigas Area Southbound of EDSA Highway INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—A consumers group on Thursday asked the Supreme Court to stop the government from implementing the issuances creating the Integrated Transport System (ITS).

In an 18-page petition, the Coalition of Filipino Consumer through counsel Erikson Flores said Executive Order 67 which ordered the creation of the ITS and Administrative Order 40 which directed the establishment of Interim Transport Terminals should be declared unconstitutional.

Under the ITS, two integrated transport terminals that are par with international standards will be established with locations in the North and South of Metro Manila with the objective of providing effective interconnections between different transport modes and services to ensure smooth travel for commuters.

But petitioner said their constitutional right to due process and equal protection of laws were violated by the issuances because no public notice, consultation and hearing were conducted.

“The members of the Coalition of Filipino Consumers who are likewise commuters had to bear with additional burden on their part as they had to shell out extra money from their pockets. An encumbrance on their daily budget for travel expenses…This is an imposition which can be likened to a tax on the commuting public, plain and simple,” the petition stated.

This is the third petition filed against the constitutionality of the ITS.

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