BAGUIO CITY – The City Council requested the Office of the President, through the Department of Transportation and Railways (DOTR) and the Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB), to stop issuing certificates of public convenience (CPCs) covering routes in the city under the transportation network vehicle service (TNVS) except when issued exemption by the local government through an approved resolution.
The resolution authored by Councilors Benny Bomogao, Faustino Olowan and Michael Lawana noted that there were several CPCs that were issued by the LTFRB covering UHOP and TNVS that resulted to the sudden increase in vehicles using the said type of transport services in the city.
The local legislative body underscored the fact that there is a need for the DOTR and LTFRB to respect the existing moratorium on the issuance of CPCs covering routes in the city to prevent the occurrence of tremendous traffic jams that might affect the robust growth of the tourism industry.
It will be recalled that the City Council passed Resolution No. 316, series of 1995 which requested the LTFRB to issue a moratorium on the issuance of franchises for public utility vehicles plying the city because of the tremendous traffic jams.
Because of the said resolution, the LTFRB issued Memorandum Circular No. 96-002 which suspended the acceptance for PUV services in the city.
On November 17, 2003, the LTFRB further issued Memorandum Circular No. 2003-028 directing a nationwide moratorium on the acceptance of new applications and petitions for the issuance of certificates of public convenience, except trucks for hire services.
After 13 years, the LTFRB again issued Memorandum Circular No. 216-008 dated July 21, 2016, suspending all UHOP TNVS applications that took effect on 22 July 2016.
Further, the LTFRB issued Memorandum Circular No. 2016-012 suspending the acceptance of TNVS applications nationwide which immediately took effect after it was published in a newspaper of general circulation.
Some of the councilors expressed surprise that the despite the effectivity of the moratorium, there were some UHOP TNVS applicants who were issued franchises within the existing moratorium which is in violation of the LTFRB’s own issuance.
The City Council underscored that in such cases, the LTFRB should refer such applications for the issuance of CPCs to the local government to seek its conformity before acting on the matter to avoid contributing to the worsening traffic congestions around the city because of the unregulated issuance of franchises to vehicle owners.
The resolution urged the LT?FRB to cancel all the CPCs it issued for PUVs and TNVS applicants that fall within the moratorium period because the said issuance is considered anomalous and fraudulent that warrants the conduct of the necessary investigation by concerned government agencies and anti-corruption units. /By Dexter A. See
