30 November 2005
’No MOA, no way’, DPWH declares’ ; threatens to sue
A LEGAL battle looms between the city government here and the Department of Public Works and Highways over a newly passed city ordinance declaring portions of most national roads here as pay parking areas.
The city’s pay parking ordinance for 2005 has yet to be signed into law by Mayor Benjamin Lim but the DPWH, through District Engineer Rodolfo Dion, already expressed a move to contest its legality in any court of justice.
This further sours the relationship between the city government and the DPWH weeks after the former threatened to sue the latter for allegedly not following its request to build a shorter alignment of the Dawel-Pantal-Lucao road that could have meant millions of pesos of savings from that project.
City Legal Officer Geraldine Baniqued defended the action of the city council in passing the pay parking ordinance, saying the same was empowered to regulate traffic in those stretches.
Dion countered however that designation of pay parking on national roads can not be done unilaterally by the city without first securing a memorandum of agreement with the DPWH.
Dion objected to the designation for pay parking of such roads as A.B. Fernandez Avenue, Burgos street, Perez Boulevard, Mayombo road, M.H. del Pilar street, portions of Arellano street and other national roads.
Under the ordinance, owners of light vehicles such as cars, jeeps, jeepneys, min-trucks, sports utility vehicles and pick-ups will be charged P20 for every two hours and P5 more for every additional hour.
Medium vehicles, like delivery vans and trucks below 10-wheelers, will be charged P30 per hour an dP10 for every hour thereafter.
Out of the fees to be collected, 20 percent will go to the city and 80 percent to the parking contractor who will employ parking attendants. Nothing will go to the DPWH.
Baniqued said the ordinance is a product of months of careful study and deliberation by members of the city council and there is no way they could have committed a blunder.
Dion, however, said national roads are under the jurisdiction of the DPWH and the latter is the one spending for the maintenance of the same although these may be located within a city or town.
He said that he can not remember having been invited to attend any city council public hearing on the measure, saying that if he were invited, he could have told the city officials that they first obtain a MOA from the DPWH before converting national roads for pay parking. (PNA)
The city’s pay parking ordinance for 2005 has yet to be signed into law by Mayor Benjamin Lim but the DPWH, through District Engineer Rodolfo Dion, already expressed a move to contest its legality in any court of justice.
This further sours the relationship between the city government and the DPWH weeks after the former threatened to sue the latter for allegedly not following its request to build a shorter alignment of the Dawel-Pantal-Lucao road that could have meant millions of pesos of savings from that project.
City Legal Officer Geraldine Baniqued defended the action of the city council in passing the pay parking ordinance, saying the same was empowered to regulate traffic in those stretches.
Dion countered however that designation of pay parking on national roads can not be done unilaterally by the city without first securing a memorandum of agreement with the DPWH.
Dion objected to the designation for pay parking of such roads as A.B. Fernandez Avenue, Burgos street, Perez Boulevard, Mayombo road, M.H. del Pilar street, portions of Arellano street and other national roads.
Under the ordinance, owners of light vehicles such as cars, jeeps, jeepneys, min-trucks, sports utility vehicles and pick-ups will be charged P20 for every two hours and P5 more for every additional hour.
Medium vehicles, like delivery vans and trucks below 10-wheelers, will be charged P30 per hour an dP10 for every hour thereafter.
Out of the fees to be collected, 20 percent will go to the city and 80 percent to the parking contractor who will employ parking attendants. Nothing will go to the DPWH.
Baniqued said the ordinance is a product of months of careful study and deliberation by members of the city council and there is no way they could have committed a blunder.
Dion, however, said national roads are under the jurisdiction of the DPWH and the latter is the one spending for the maintenance of the same although these may be located within a city or town.
He said that he can not remember having been invited to attend any city council public hearing on the measure, saying that if he were invited, he could have told the city officials that they first obtain a MOA from the DPWH before converting national roads for pay parking. (PNA)
