MMDA chair: Salceda may have misunderstood Edsa bus scheme

Gov. Joey Salceda INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines–The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is confident that the Supreme Court will decide in the government’s favor when it takes up Albay Gov. Joey Salceda’s petition to put a stop to the ban against provincial buses on Edsa.

In a phone interview, MMDA Chair Francis Tolentino told the Inquirer that he had yet to receive a copy of Salceda’s appeal although he pointed out that the Office of the Solicitor General’s response would probably focus on Executive Order No. 202, which states that no temporary restraining order (TRO) can be issued against national government projects.

He added that Salceda may have misunderstood the transport scheme, saying it applied only to “colorum” buses or those without a franchise. Also covered were out-of-line buses or those without terminals in Metro Manila.

“I think the facts will sustain us because these buses are colorum, out-of-line, so what happens is that every time they traverse Edsa or enter [Metro Manila], they are apprehended. What happens is that the riders will be asked to disembark [from] the bus because [it] will be impounded,” Tolentino said.

He explained that the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) decided, together with the agency and the Metro Manila Council, that the best thing to do was to open the Southwest Interim Provincial Terminal (SIPT) in Alabang, Muntinlupa City, to these buses instead of bringing them to an impounding area.

“I think the facts [are] in favor of the government because it is [more convenient for] those coming from the Bicol region to board a legitimate bus with a franchise [that will take them to] a recognized terminal,” Tolentino said.

In a petition for prohibition and mandamus filed on Monday, Salceda said that banning buses from south Luzon from entering Metro Manila and restricting them to a terminal in Muntinlupa City were done without consultation.

He added that the move discriminated against ordinary rural folk from Bicol region who take the bus to the metropolis.

The MMDA, LTFRB and the Muntinlupa City government, opened the SIPT for 556 provincial buses from south Luzon last month to ease traffic on Edsa.–With Kristine Felisse Mangunay