Video by INQUIRER.net’s RYAN LEAGOGO
MANILA, Philippines—A transport group on Tuesday asked the Supreme Court to stop the government from implementing a new rule that imposes stiffer penalties on operators of “colorum” vehicles, or public utility vehicles plying the routes without a franchise from government.
In a 17-page petition for certiorari, the “Angat Tsuper Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operator ng Pilipinas-Genuine Organization” or “Angat Tsuper/Stop & Go” also asked the high court to nullify Joint Administrative Order No. 2014-01 or the “Revised Schedule of Fines and Penalties for Violations of Laws, Rules and Regulations Governing Land Transportation” for being unconstitutional.
Jun Magno, STOP & GO Transport Coalition president. Photo by RYAN LEAGOGO/INQUIRER.net
Under the Joint Administrative Order, the fine for other first-time colorum offenders are: trucks – P200,000; jeepney – P50,000; vans – P200,000; sedans – P120,000; motorcycles – P6,000; and buses, P1 million.
Apart from these fines, colorum vehicles will also be impounded for a minimum period of three months. The entire certificate of public convenience (CPC) to which the colorum vehicle belongs will be revoked, as well as their vehicle registrations.
They will also be blacklisted from being used as PUVs in the future.
It will take effect on June 19.
In their petition, the group told the high court that the new policy was vague because of its failure to indicate whether the penalty will be paid by the owner/operator or driver of the public utility vehicle.
They added that the fines imposed is also a “”thousand percent” increase from the penalties set under Republic Act 4136 or the Land Transportation and Traffic Code of 1964.
“Lucidly, the increase was excessive, unreasonable and oppressive, and is offensive to the due process clause of the Constitution,” the petition stated.
“If for one reason or another, due to inadvertence, a full-time PUJ driver or family driver (or with similar occupation) earning P500 a day failed to bring with him his driver’s license or lost along the way without his knowledge, if caught, then his one week earnings would be taken at the expense of his family, lose his job and could no longer work,” it added.
Named respondents in the petition are Transportation Secretary Joseph Abaya, Land Transportation Office (LTO) Assistant Secretary Alfonso Tan Jr., and Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Chairman Winston Ginez
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