MANILA : Government lawyers have asked the Supreme Court (SC) to deny for lack of merit the suit filed by transport group Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston) and other groups challenging the government’s Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP).

The Office of the Solicitor General, representing the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), urged the tribunal to turn down the petition filed by Piston that challenged the legality of the PUVMP, according to its 65-page comment shared with the media on Tuesday.

The SolGen said both the DOTr and LTFRB stressed the suit did not adhere to the hierarchy of courts by not initially filing the petition with lower courts, stressing that the SC should be the “last court of resort.”

“The doctrine of the hierarchy of courts is a practical judicial policy designed to restrain parties from directly resorting to this Honorable Court when relief may be obtained from l
ower courts,” the DOTr and LTFRB said.

The SolGen also said the there was no actual case or controversy and that the transport groups failed to demonstrate their standing to sue.

The DOTr and LTFRB asserted that, even if the petition is entertained, it should be dismissed for lack of merit, arguing that legislative authority was appropriately delegated for the promulgation of the challenged Department Order (DO) No. 2017-011 and other issuances.

The DOTr and LTFRB affirmed that the measure is crucial to address the current disintegration and inefficiency in the country’s public transportation system.

The mandatory franchise consolidation will replace individual franchises with a single cooperative or corporation per route, and will pave the way for the eventual phase out of traditional jeepneys and unconsolidated utility van express vehicles.

The DOTr and LTFRB issuances, including DOTr Department Order No. 2017-011, the catalyst for the modernization program, and LTFRB MC 2023-051, originally set a Dec.
31, 2023 deadline for consolidation and franchise cancellations.

Meanwhile, the Liga ng Transportasyon at Operators sa Pilipinas (LTOP) is scheduled to present to the DOTr on Jan. 21 prototypes of a modern public utility jeepney (PUJ), a ‘jumbo jeepney,’ a tourist jeepney and an electric jeepney.

In an interview, LTOP president Orlando Marquez Sr. said his group will seek Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista’s support in promoting the widespread use of these modern public utility vehicles (PUVs).

Marquez said the proposed PUJs of the future will retain the general appearance of the “traditional jeepney” but will be more fuel efficient, less-polluting, more spacious and some will even be air-conditioned.

He added some 82 percent of the domestic transport sector supports the long-delayed modernization of PUJs despite the resistance being put up by two groups.

Marquez said efforts by Piston and Samahang Manibela Mananakay at Nagkaisang Terminal ng Transportasyon (Manibela) to postpone anew the implementa
tion of the PUVMP should be rejected outright.

He said the PUVMP began as early as 1997 for other modes of transportation, such as city and provincial buses, ‘FX’ taxis (now called UV Express), and even for school service vans, but the jeepney sector until now failed to transition to more efficient units.

‘I don’t understand why they (other transport groups) steadfastly resist modernization. They are complaining without really understanding how it can help our whole industry,’ Marquez told the Philippine News Agency in Filipino.

He said transitioning to PUVs that emit less carbon was a commitment the Philippine government made as part of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group of countries.

Over 30,000 PUJs will be deemed illegal and treated as colorum units starting Feb. 1.

Marquez said Piston’s argument suggesting that upgrading their jeepneys will cause operators to go bankrupt is baseless, pointing out that a handful of PUJ operators are already using modernized jeepneys and are thriving.

I
n fact, the operation of more efficient vehicles has resulted in fuel and maintenance savings to its owners, he said.

‘If they think they will lose money, they need to study the fact further. Modernization is the way to remain relevant. You cannot operate obsolete units forever,’ the transport leader added.

Source: Philippines News Agency

Da Nang: In a joint effort to address urban development challenges, authorities of Da Nang City and leaders of Japan’s Yokohama city convened the 12th urban development forum in the Vietnamese central city on January 16.

Their discussions covered a range of topics, including the establishment of eco-industrial zones, solid waste management, smart urban development, sustainable growth and voluntary local assessments.

Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Le Quang Nam described these discussions as a groundwork to study and propose solutions to fostering smart urban development in Da Nang, helping address local pressing issues such as traffic management, urban development, public order and security, environment, education, healthcare, and economic development. The ultimate goal is to improve the quality of local lives while ensuring better social welfare.

As part of the event, the municipal authorities arranged a field trip for the Japanese delegation to explore key projects, including the Lien C
hieu Port, a railway station relocation project, and a waste treatment plant.

The forum also served as a platform to facilitate business connections, fostering ties between the Da Nang Young Entrepreneurs’ Association and businesses from Yokohama city.

Highlighting the collaborative achievements over the past years, Director General on Development Cooperation of Yokohama city Hashimoto Toru said both Da Nang and Yokohama have declared their commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050. Da Nang’s focus on green, sustainable development and carbon neutrality with help popularise its image and attract more capital in the future.

Yakabe Yoshinori, Consul General of Japan in Da Nang, noted that Da Nang has set long-term economic development goals with the aim of becoming a regional hub for commerce, logistics, finance, tourism, hi-tech and information technology (IT) in the entire Southeast Asia.

As a port and well-known tourist destination, Yokohama is also a key component of Japan’s largest industrial region, the
Keihin industrial zone so that it is home to numerous high-tech and IT enterprises, he said, adding that the Consulate General wishes to see further development in the ties between the two cities and offer support to the best of its ability.

Operating under the Memorandum of Understanding on technical cooperation for sustainable development signed by the two cities, this forum has been a recurring event since 2013. To date, 11 editions have been successfully held in the two cities./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

MANILA: Commission on Appointment (CA) Assistant Minority Leader Johnny Pimentel on Tuesday said they have already received the appointment papers of new Finance Secretary Ralph Recto along with the nomination papers of two ambassadors and the promotion papers of 168 senior military officers.

The Surigao del Sur representative said the CA will start the hearings once Congress resumes session on Jan. 22.

‘Based on CA records, Flerida Ann Camille Mayo was named Philippine ambassador to Cambodia while Edgar Tomas Auxilian was selected Philippine ambassador to Papua New Guinea with concurrent jurisdiction over Kiribati and Solomon Islands,’ Pimentel said.

The latest batch of senior military officers awaiting their confirmation hearings, he said, is led by four Philippine Army major generals: Leodevic Guinid, Allan Hambala, Edmund Peralta, and Ramon Zagala II.

‘We also have 13 brigadier generals from the Philippine Army, three commodores from the Philippine Navy and 148 colonels from the Philippine Army and th
e Philippine Air Force pending confirmation,’ Pimentel added.

Pimentel urged the public to submit to the CA Secretariat in case there is any information, written report, or sworn/notarized complaints or oppositions to the appointees.

The Constitution empowers the 25-member CA to scrutinize the competence, fitness and integrity of key presidential appointees, and to approve or disapprove them.

The commission is composed of 12 members each from the House of Representatives and the Senate, with the Senate President as ex officio presiding officer.

Source: Philippines News Agency

Kuala Lumpur: The Vietnam – Malaysia Business Association (VMBIZ), with the support of the Business Association of Overseas Vietnamese (BAOOV), on January 15 held a ceremony to present a bronze bell to Ti-Ratana Heights pagoda in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The 1.5-tonne bell was cast in Hanoi’s suburban district of My Duc at a cost of 400,000 RM (85,320 USD). It is decorated with images of a map of Vietnam, Vietnam’s bronze drum and pagoda and a list of benefactors who donated for the bell’s making.

Speaking at the ceremony, head monk of the pagoda K.Sri Dhammaratana Nayaka Maha Thera, who is the Buddhist Chief High Priest of Malaysia, said that the offered bell creates an initial foundation for the Vietnamese community in Malaysia to join hands in building their own temple. According to him, with about 10,000 Vietnamese people living and working in Kuala Lumpur, Ti-Ratana pagoda will certainly become the second home of Vietnamese people and a place to convey Buddhism to future generations.

The BAOOV’s Genera
l Secretary Peter Hong said that the bell offered to the Ti-Ratana pagoda is the 92nd of its kind that the association has helped to present to pagodas in 92 countries and territories across the world.

Located about 15 km from the centre of Kuala Lumpur, Ti-Ratana pagoda is located on an area of 5,000 sq.m on a gentle hill and surrounded by a vast green forest.

Many Vietnamese Buddhists visit the pagoda at weekends in recent years to worship Buddha. In August 2022, Vietnamese monks, nuns and Buddhists presented a 2m-high Buddha statue to the pagoda. The Vietnamese community in Malaysia wishes to have a Vietnamese pagoda in Malaysia./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

DUMAGUETE: Some 40,000 beneficiaries of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) in Negros Oriental are qualified to avail of the condonation program of the government.

Manuel Galon Jr., Provincial Agrarian Reform Officer 1 of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in Negros Oriental, on Tuesday told the Philippine News Agency that the program would cover the farmers’ principal loans, unpaid amortizations and interests.

‘These beneficiaries who were awarded agricultural lands under the CARP fall under the compensable category, such that they can apply for the condonation, so they can be debt-free,’ Galon said.

An estimated 120,000 individuals were awarded Certificates of Land Ownership Awards since the program’s inception in the late 1970s by President Ferdinand E. Marcos.

Based on DAR records, Galon said about 40,000 of the total ARBs have already paid their dues in full, while the other 40,000 fall under the non-compensable category, disqualifying them for condonation.

He urged the qualified b
eneficiaries to go to condonation centers and apply for the program.

Signed into law on July 9, 2023, Republic Act (RA) 11953 or the New Agrarian Reform Emancipation Act, condones all loans, including interests, penalties and surcharges incurred by ARBs from land awarded to them.

The condonation covers an estimated 1.173 million hectares of land that will benefit around 610,054 ARBs who incurred an estimated PHP57.55 billion in unpaid amortizations.

RA 11953 also terminates the payment of PHP206.247 million in unpaid just compensation to the landowners by 10,201 ARBs tilling 11,531 hectares of land acquired through the voluntary land transfer or the direct payment scheme.

Additional benefits for ARBs include exemption from payment of estate tax and mandatory inclusion in the Registry System of Basic Sectors in Agriculture to give them easy access to support services of the Department of Agriculture.

Source: Philippines News Agency

Vietnam’s fruit and vegetable exports are expected to reach a new record of 6.5-7 billion USD this year, up 15-20% from 2023, propelled by robust market signs, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Earlier, the agricultural sector eyed 4.5 billion USD and 5.69 billion USD in export turnover in 2024 and 2025, respectively. However, 2023 was a successful year of the fruit and vegetable sector as export revenue reached a record high of 5.69 billion USD, a year-on-year hike of nearly 70%.

Source: Vietnam News Agency