Bayan ‘to assert right’ to hold Sona rally

A SECOND Quezon City judge has upheld a City Hall order barring militant groups from holding rallies tomorrow on major roads leading to the House of Representatives, where President Aquino is set to deliver his State of the Nation Address (Sona).

The ruling handed down Friday night was met with defiance by Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) secretary general Renato Reyes Jr., who said “we plan to assert our rights on Monday.

“If the courts fail to uphold the rights of the people, it falls on the people to assert their rights,” said Reyes, whose group earlier sought permission to march on Batasan Road. Another group, the Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC), had also asked to be allowed to assemble near Ever Gotesco mall on Commonwealth Avenue.

Serious traffic problem

Judge Germano Francisco Legaspi of Regional Trial Court Branch 77 denied Bayan’s petition for a temporary restraining order against the ban, saying the group’s “planned activity was merely regulated on account of a serious traffic problem.”

“Petitioners can still exercise their right at another place,” said the judge, who pointed to the park on the City Hall compound which was earlier suggested by a local government officer.

Earlier last week, Elmo San Diego, chief of the city’s Department of Public Order and Safety, denied the requests from Bayan and FDC, stressing that Batasan and Commonwealth were “no-rally zones.” San Diego pointed them instead to the park (originally a football field) where he said they don’t need a permit to hold a rally.

No extreme urgency

This prompted Bayan to challenge the ban in court, in a complaint naming Mayor Herbert Bautista and Quezon City Police District director Chief Supt. Richard Albano among the respondents.

Early Friday, Executive Judge Fernando Sagun Jr. denied the group’s petition for a 72-hour restraining order but had the case raffled off. It eventually went to Legaspi.

“After due consideration, the court finds no extreme urgency for the issuance of the (TRO) prayed for,” Legaspi said in his ruling. Contrary to the petitioners’ argument, he said, a request for a rally permit can be turned down not just due to the presence of “a clear and present danger.”

“Among others, the law allows a mayor not to grant a permit on the ground of public inconvenience,” the court explained.