SC asked to reconsider lifting ‘No Contact’ TRO
A lawyer who secured the 2022 temporary restraining order (TRO) on the No Contact Apprehension Policy (NCAP) has asked the Supreme Court to reconsider its recent decision partially lifting the ban.
Transport groups led by transport network vehicle services (TNVS) and private motorists will also stage a protest today against NCAP being implemented by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) in major roads in Metro Manila.
In an 18-page motion filed on May 29, lawyer Juman Paa urged the high court to recall and set aside the partial lifting of the TRO, arguing that it renders the ban on the City of Manila’s NCAP “futile” because 40 percent of the roads where the policy is now allowed are within the capital city.
Paa is one of the petitioners in the consolidated cases that challenged the implementation of NCAP by local governments, which led to the TRO issued by the Supreme Court.
He specifically challenged the Manila City Council and outgoing Mayor Honey Lacuna for enacting the ordinance that implemented NCAP in the city.
In its May 20 resolution, the high tribunal clarified that the partial lifting of the TRO applied only to roads under the MMDA’s jurisdiction, and that the ban on local ordinances enforcing NCAP remained in effect.
However, Paa pointed out that nine of the 22 roads where NCAP enforcement has resumed are in the City of Manila.
These include C1 (Recto Avenue), C2 (Mendoza Street), C2 (President Quirino Avenue), R1 (Roxas Boulevard), R2 (Taft Avenue), R3 (South Super Highway), R6 (Magsaysay Boulevard), R9 (Rizal Avenue), and R10 (Del Pan).
“With nine out of 22 roads, or 40 percent, located within the City of Manila, it appears that the TRO on Manila’s local NCAP ordinance was either circumvented or rendered ineffective by implication,” Paa told the Inquirer.
‘Unfair liability’
In his motion, he also alleged that the respondents had “merely used” the Edsa rehabilitation as an “excuse” to justify their request to lift the TRO, saying it was “highly unlikely” that vehicles from Edsa would divert to some of the roads covered by the policy.
He reiterated his earlier arguments regarding the lack of legal basis for imposing the “registered owner of vehicle” rule and the alleged violations of informational privacy under NCAP.
“The personal information of the registered owner of the involved vehicle would be processed even if the identity of the actual driver who committed the violation is still uncertain. Hence, the data privacy of the owner had been breached already. This would ineluctably subject the registered owners to unfair and unreasonable liability solely due to the basis of ownership,” he said.
In seeking reconsideration and clarification, Paa pointed out that one of the reasons cited by the MMDA in its motion to lift the ban was the expected significant diversion of vehicles to interior roads and alternate routes due to the rehabilitation of Edsa, a plan postponed on Sunday.
“However, it is highly unlikely that there will be a diversion of vehicles to some of these covered roads when the rehabilitation of Edsa starts,” he said.
“In this regard, the movant-petitioner moves for clarification as to the necessity of implementing the NCAP in all the aforesaid roads within Manila,” he said.
Lack of consultation
For Stop NCAP Coalition, the MMDA is “rushing” to enforce yet again the NCAP despite not consulting the transport sector that would be burdened by the revival of the traffic policy.
The government also first needs to fix the road infrastructure in Metro Manila, especially road markings and traffic signages, before fully implementing NCAP.
According to Jun de Leon, convener of Stop NCAP Coalition and national president of Laban TNVS, their protest program will be conducted starting at 8 a.m. at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City.
Transport caravans will also be mounted in different parts of Metro Manila, with motorcycle advocates also planning to stage their own protests on June 8.
“The transport sector will mount a series of protest actions if needed just so we can put a stop to this NCAP,” De Leon said on dzMM radio on Saturday.
The TNVS sector and motorcycle groups, and public utility vehicle drivers led by the Manibela group are consulting with their lawyers on the possible filing of a motion for the Supreme Court to reconsider NCAP’s suspension.
Stop NCAP Coalition questioned the real motive why the MMDA immediately enforced the NCAP on all major roads in Metro Manila just six days after securing a favorable ruling from the court.
The MMDA fully enforced the policy on May 26, explaining it did not need a dry run, since all the camera systems, technology and personnel to implement NCAP were already in place and running despite the TRO, with the agency deferring only the sending of notice of violations.
