Push to amend air passengers’ bill of rights ‘untimely’
THE PUSH to expand the rights of air passengers amid such unforeseen circumstances as the global coronavirus pandemic is untimely, an industry expert said.
“I think this is untimely and unreasonable. The airlines have been suffering already due to the pandemic. They are losing heavily and have been asking the government for regulatory leniency by way of support,” Philippine aviation industry expert Avelino D.L. Zapanta said in an e-mailed reply to questions on Aug. 21.
Mr. Zapanta, a former Philippine Airlines chief executive officer and president, said requiring the airlines to assume additional responsibilities could “become the last nail in their coffin.”
Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) Executive Director Carmelo L. Arcilla said last week the airline regulator is considering expanding the rights of travelers as part of a plan to amend the air passengers’ bill of rights.
“Ang air passengers’ bill of rights natin ay muli nating pinag-aaralan, kasi maraming bagay dyan na dapat sigurong i-revise para maging relevant sa mga current developments (We are reviewing the air passengers’ bill of rights, as there are many things that we may need to revise to make them relevant to current developments),” Mr. Arcilla said in an online briefing last week.
He added that under present rules, airlines have limited responsibility to passengers in case flights are canceled due to force majeure.
Officials of Philippine Airlines, Cebu Air, Inc., and Philippines AirAsia, Inc. said in early July that they were hoping for the prompt passage of the P1.3-trillion stimulus package, known as ARISE (Accelerated Recovery and Investments Stimulus for the Economy).
The proposed measure allocates about P70 billion to aid the transportation sector this year.
The bill was approved by the House of Representatives in June but its counterpart measure is still awaiting committee-level approval at the Senate.
A separate legislation, the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act bill, provides P9.5 billion to various programs under the Department of Transportation. The measure worth up to P165 billion secured approval of the bicameral conference committee last week.
In May, the Air Carriers Association of the Philippines appealed to Congress that the aviation industry might need around P8.6 billion per month to help them survive the crisis.
Their proposal involves P1.3 billion in wage subsidies, P500 million in foregone fees due to the government, and P6.8 billion in working capital.
Airlines have started to lay off employees, with the flag carrier cutting 300 jobs in February after reporting losses in 2019. AirAsia Group was expected to reduce its workforce in the Philippines by 12%, while Cebu Pacific is looking at 800 jobs cut this month. — Arjay L. Balinbin
Business community applauds high court ruling on warrantless searches, arrests
BUSINESS GROUPS lauded the Supreme Court for upholding in a recent decision that warrantless searches and seizures by authorities is illegal.
“We thank the Court of delivering a message that no citizen should be deprived of his personal liberty based on unlawfully obtained evidence, such as in an illegal search or a warrantless arrest,” read the joint statement of 11 business groups.
“The business community is highly encouraged by the Court’s determination to uphold the rule of law over the rule of men,” it said.
They also called on the government sector and citizens to be “watchful and to help ensure that constitutional rights are always protected” and to hold accountable those who violate these rights.
The signatories were the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines, Institute of Corporate Directors, Institute for Solidarity in Asia, Investment Houses Association of the Philippines, Judicial Reform Initiative, Makati Business Club, Management Association of the Philippines, Shareholders Association of the Philippines, American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Canadian Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines, and European Chamber of the Philippines.
The Supreme Court ruling involved the acquittal of Jerry Sapla from drug charges on ground of reasonable doubt.
His immediate release was also ordered by the country’s highest court.
The court, in its decision, asserted that law enforcers cannot act based solely on confidential or tipped information in situations involving warrantless arrest.
“A tip is still hearsay no matter how reliable it may be” and that it is not sufficient to constitute probable cause, the judges said.
The ruling also said that the warrantless search conducted on Mr. Sapla “was an invalid and unlawful search of a moving vehicle.”
“A battle waged against illegal drugs that tramples on the rights of the people is not a war on drugs; it is a war against the people,” the court said.
“The Bill of Rights should never be sacrificed on the altar of convenience. Otherwise, the malevolent mantle of the rule of men dislodges the rule of law,” it added.
Mr. Sapla was arrested in January 2014 after four bricks of marijuana leaves were found in his vehicle.
Authorities flagged his passenger jeepney based on an anonymous call and text message on the transport of marijuana in the province of Kalinga. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas
POEA orders recruitment agencies to assist stranded workers
THE PHILIPPINE Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) has ordered recruitment agencies to assist workers whom they have already processed for placement abroad but have been stranded due to the lockdown.
A POEA resolution dated Aug. 20 directs the private agencies to provide the affected workers temporary accommodation, food, and transportation for returning to their home provinces. They are also called to shoulder the cost of the coronavirus test, which is required by most local governments for returning residents.
“The Administration has received an alarming increasing number of reports concerning locally stranded overseas employment applicants who were either abandoned, neglected, or otherwise evicted by private recruitment agencies from their accommodation houses and were left unattended with very little to no means for securing sustenance and basic provisions,” reads the POEA resolution.
The agencies are required to submit a report on the status of the affected workers and applicants’ to the POEA’s Welfare Services Branch.
The POEA said agencies that fail to comply with the resolution will face documentary suspension and other administrative charges. — Gillian M. Cortez
BI tightens screening of incoming foreigners
THE BUREAU of Immigration (BI) has directed its officers in airports and other ports to tighten the screening of foreigners claiming that they are married to a Filipino to gain entry into the country.
Immigration Commissioner Jaime H. Morente said his order came following reports that some foreigners were able to enter the country by presenting fraudulent marriage certificates.
The government recently eased restrictions on foreigners, allowing those who are spouses of Filipinos or those who have minor Filipino children or children with special needs to enter the country.
“I have ordered our frontline officers at the ports to be doubly strict in screening foreigners alleging that they are married to Filipinos or have Filipino children here. It is not enough that they have entry visas, marriage and birth certificates in their possession,” Mr. Morente said in a statement.
The BI will run after the foreigners who entered the country with fake certificates, he added.
Two South Koreans were denied entry at the international airport in Cebu on Aug. 17 for presenting scanned copies of fake marriage certificates. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas
