Gov slams truck ban
BENGUET Governor Cresencio Pacalso recently urged Baguio City officials to hold the implementation of an ordinance imposing a truck ban to avoid "killing" the livelihood of Benguet farmers.
“I talked to Mayor Mauricio Domogan this week and he said he has ordered the city police to hold the implementation of the truck ban ordinance,” the governor said.
The Baguio City Council recently passed Ordinance 50 series of 2017 prohibiting heavy equipment, trailers, dump trucks and other freight trucks or sixwheeler trucks and above with gross weight of 4,500 kilograms or more
from traversing various roads around the city from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Truckers agreed to the implementation of the total truck ban in the city from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. but questioned the enforcement of the truck ban from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., which is the height of the transportation of vegetables from trading posts in Benguet province to Metro Manila and other lowland markets.
According to the truckers, the height of their travel is from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. to beat the 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. truck ban in La Trinidad, which is why they want the local government to exempt their trucks that transport perishable goods from the coverage of the new truck ban in the city.
Pacalso explained there should be co-existence between Baguio and Benguet, which are contiguous local government units. Baguio is bounded by Benguet towns where vegetables and flowers brought to Metro Manila and other parts of the country are produced.
Almost 80 percent of the highland vegetable requirement of the country is produced in Benguet province."
The governor said their farmers will be greatly affected because vegetables will not be able to reach major trading areas in Metro Manila at the time when the traders are buying. This means the perishable vegetable products will have to wait for another day before the produce can be bought or can be brought to the ports leading to regions outside Metro Manila.
“There are specific hours in Metro Manila when trucks are allowed to traverse the roads, they are catching up with the buyers and are also catching up with the cargo ships so they cannot delay their transport,” Pacalso said.
Pacalso said delays will mean higher prices of vegetable commodities in Metro Manila and losses on the part of the farmers of Benguet, including the truckers.
The governor relayed Domogan tasked the police not to implement the ordinance pending the city council’s confirmation of his administrative order exempting truckers carrying necessary goods and services and the city council’s approval of the amendatory ordinance filed by vice mayor Edison Bilog.
Domogan, during the weekly press briefing late Wednesday afternoon, said the executive branch, which he heads, implements the laws created by the legislative body. Liza Agoot/PNA