WALANG ‘K’ o karapatan na manghuli, mag impound at mag-depose ng kolorum na sasakyan ang Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).
‘Yan ang legal na opinion ng Department of Justice (DOJ) pagkatapos humingi ng paglilinaw si dating DOTr Arthur Tugade at LTFRB sa naturang ahensiya kung nasa hurisdiksiyon ba ng LTFRB ang paghuhuli ng mga kolorum na mga sasakyan sa kalsada.
Ang legal opinion ni Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla may petsa na May 31, 2023 at naka-address kay DOTr Sec. Jaime Bautista.
Saad ng DOJ chief, ang puwede lamang gawin ng LTFRB ay makipag-coordinate sa mga ibang mga ahensiya ng gobyerno para sa apprehension ng mga kolurum na sasakyan.
“We advise that [the] LTFRB has no power to apprehend, impound, and dispose of colorum vehicles,” pahayag ni Sec. Jesus Crispin Remulla, Department of Justice.
“Its authority extends only [to] the coordination [and] cooperation with other government agencies in the apprehension, impounding, and disposal of such vehicles,” aniya.
Aniya maari lamang ito manghuli ng mga kolorum kung ito ay binigyan ng kapangyarihang gawin ito ng Land Transportation Office o ng Philippine National Police.
“We are of the opinion that, unless duly deputized by the LTO (Land Transportation Office) or PNP (Philippine National Police), the LTFRB has no power to enforce the provisions of EO No. 202 and other related laws and hence cannot legally apprehend and impound colorum vehicles,” ani Remulla.
Ayon sa DOJ chief batay sa Section 4(5) ng Republic Act (RA) No. 4136, o ang ‘Land Transportation and Traffic Code’, na inamyendahan sa Section 35(b)( ng RA No. 6975, o ‘Department of the Interior and Local Government Act of 1990’, ay tanging LTO at PNP lamang ang maaring magsagawa ng enforcement pagdating sa mga traffic rules.
Saad nito na ang kapangyarihan ng LFTRB ay malinaw na nakalagay sa Section 05 ng E.0 202 at wala aniya mababasang probisyon doon na maaari itong magsagawa ng apprehension sa mga kolorum na sasakyan.
“The law does not contain any express provision which authorizes LTFRB to apprehend, impound and dispose of colorum vehicles,” ayon pa kay Remulla.
“If there was no express grant of authority to apprehend, impound and dispose of colorum vehicles, could such power be inferred from other provisions of E.O. No. 202? The answer to this is in the negative,” dagdag ng DOJ Secretary.
Hindi rin aniya pwedeng gamitin ng LTFRB ang Joint Administrative Order (JAO) No. 4014-01 para magkaroon enforcement power maliban na lamang kung may probisyon sa batas.
“With respect to the position that the power to apprehend/impound colorum vehicles may be inferred from JAO No. 2014-01, we reiterate that without any provision of law granting such power to LTFRB, it has no authority to exercise such powers. Administrative issuances must be in harmony with the law upon which such issuances are based,” aniya.
