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Thursday, August 25, 2005
SRP passes ‘violate’ equal protection rule
By Grecar Nilles
Sun.Star Staff Reporter
While there is an ongoing construction of a tunnel near the Aduana entrance of the South Reclamation Project (SRP), it does not merit the closure of the road inside the reclaimed area, said lawyer Alfredo J. Sipalay.
During the court’s inspection yesterday, Sipalay said the tunnel work has not affected traffic flow, which could warrant the road’s closure or limits on the number of motorists who can use the South Coastal Road.
Sipalay, who filed the case to compel the Cebu City Government to reopen the road to the public, said the closure violates his right to travel.
Allowing only vehicles with security passes to use the road violates the equal protection clause of the Constitution, he added.
But City Hall lawyer Joseph Bernaldez said there’s a need to regulate the number of persons using the coastal road because of the construction work at the Aduana entrance.
Huge cranes and other construction materials endanger the lives and limbs of motorists using the road, he added.
Bernaldez also said the Cebu City Government has approved all those who applied for a security pass, as long as they were properly identified.
During yesterday’s inspection, Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 10 legal researcher Genebert Poligrates took the measurements of the area affected by the construction.
Railings
They also inspected the Mambaling access road, where the railings of the bridge have been destroyed.
Alberto Marifosque, a volunteer of the Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Bureau, said the aluminum railings were destroyed so the culprits could sell it.
Marifosque added that about eight to 10 men, armed with homemade shotguns and other firearms, even challenged police to a gunfight last Wednesday night.
“But since we do not have any communication device to ask for help, we just stayed inside the SRP and made sure that those violent men could not enter the reclamation area,” Marifosque said.
RTC Branch 10 Judge Soliver Peras earlier denied the Cebu City Government’s motion to dismiss Sipalay’s complaint because the lawyer allegedly failed to pay the right taxes.
But while he denied the City’s motion to dismiss, the judge also ruled that the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) Cebu City Chapter cannot intervene in the case, because lawyer Gloria Lastimosa-Dalawampu failed to show proof that the IBP authorized her to intervene.
Sipalay, in an interview, said the road should not only be opened to the 10,000 motorists who have been issued SRP security passes.
“The road should be open to all Cebuanos, about three million of them. Subject to reasonable police power of the state, all inhabitants of our country should be treated equally,” Sipalay said.
While Sipalay admitted that Cebu City Government has police powers, he said the courts should determine whether the state has not gone beyond its limits.
“The police power of the state should be balanced with individual liberties,” Sipalay said.
(August 25, 2005 issue)
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