By Perfecto T. Raymundo Jr.
MANILA, Aug. 5 (PNA) — The Court of Appeals (CA) has ruled that the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has no power to implement an anti-smoking campaign.
This after the CA Twelfth Division nullified the “Anti-Smoking Campaign Resolution” of the MMDA.
In a 16-page ruling dated July 31, 2015 and written by Associate Justice Maria Elisa Sempio Diy, the CA declared as “invalid” the Resolution No. 11-19 of the MMDA implementing Republic Act No. 9211 or the “Tobacco Act of 2003” which was used as basis in the implementation of the “Anti-Smoking Campaign” of the MMDA.
The CA said that the MMDA is not among the government agencies which were given the power to implement R.A. 9211.
Under the law, the CA said, only the Inter-Agency Committee-Tobacco has the exclusive power to implement the provisions of R.A. 9211.
The Inter-Agency Committee is composed of the Secretaries of the Departments of Trade and Industry (DTI), Health (DOH), Agriculture (DA), Justice (DOJ), Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Science and Technology (DOST), Education (DepEd), Administrator of the National Tobacco Administration (NTA), representatives from the tobacco industry and from the non-government organization (NGO), respectively.
The CA added that there is no provision in the implementing rules of R.A. 9211 which grants power to the MMDA to penalize or take punitive action against violators of the said law.
It stressed that the MMDA cannot use R.A. 7924, the law that created the MMDA, in the implementation of the assailed “Anti-Smoking Campaign Resolution.”
The CA pointed out that the MMDA has no “police power” and “legislative power.”
The CA decision stemmed from the appeal filed by the MMDA against the decision of the Mandaluyong City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 213 on Nov. 14, 2013 that stopped the MMDA from implementing its “Anti-Smoking Campaign.”
The Mandaluyong City RTC granted the petition filed by Anthony Clemente and Vrianne Lamsen who were penalized by the MMDA with a fine of PhP 500 each after they were caught smoking in a public place on Epifanio delos Santos Avenue (EDSA), Cubao, Quezon City. (PNA)