Interesting Legal Question from the MT

[Lee]

Clearing sidewalks, streets and other public places in Metro Manila

Dear PAO,  (MT legal advisor)

Quote

 

I was previously employed at a factory in Caloocan City, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, my employer had to lay me off, and I had to look for a new job. I applied to several companies; however, I have not received any feedback from any of the companies I have applied to. To be able to help my family, I resorted to selling my wares across a public hospital in Manila City as a sidewalk vendor. Recently, the LGU has been roving that area since they have been receiving a lot of complaints from pedestrians that it is hard to pass through that lane as it is full of vendors. Today, I was one of the unfortunate ones, as I was not able to run fast enough; the tanod were able to get the goods that I was selling. They destroyed the plasticware and threw the perishable goods into the nearest trash can they could find. Was it proper for the tanod to throw my goods away instead of giving them back to me?

Michaela

Dear Michaela,

Please be informed of Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Resolution 28-02, 25 July 2002, "Authorizing the MMDA and the LGUs to Clear the Sidewalks, Streets, Avenues, Alleys, Bridges, Parks and Other Public Places in Metro Manila of All Illegal Structures and Obstructions", which states that:

"RESOLVED FURTHER, that the use of streets, sidewalks, avenues, alleys, bridges, parks and other public places in Metro Manila for commercial and personal purposes shall be prohibited. Such prohibited acts include but not limited to the following:

"1. Vending or selling of foods, magazines, newspaper, cigarettes, brooms, watches or jewelries, shoes and other footwear, and/or any other items;

Based on the above-stated resolution, the vending or selling of foods and/or any other items in Metro Manila for commercial and personal purposes shall be prohibited. Additionally, as correctly cited in the said Resolution, the Supreme Court in the case of Umali v. Aquino (1 CA Rep 339) ruled that "the occupation and use by private individuals of sidewalks and other public places devoted to public use constitute public nuisances and nuisances per se."

"A public nuisance affects a community or neighborhood or any considerable number of persons, although the extent of the annoyance, danger, or damage upon individuals may be unequal." (Art. 695, Civil Code) Notably, a public nuisance, such as in the instant case, may be subjected to abatement, without judicial proceedings. (Article 699, Id.)

The MMDA Resolution further provides that all terms, goods, and structures found on or along roads, streets, avenues, alleys, sidewalks, bridges, parks, and other public places shall be confiscated by the government without prior notice. The same shall be treated as common or ordinary garbage and shall be disposed of as such. The government shall thus not be held liable for any damage arising from the removal, confiscation, or disposal of the said items.

As such, it appears that the tanod had a legal basis for taking and destroying the goods they confiscated from your shop, which is located on a sidewalk. Please be informed that the resolution cited is applicable only within Metro Manila. Other cities may have a different ordinance or law in place for sidewalk vendors.

We hope that we were able to answer your queries. This advice is based solely on the facts you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts are changed or elaborated on.

 

https://www.manilatimes.net/2023/07/20/legal-advice/clearing-sidewalks-streets-and-other-public-places-in-metro-manila/1901461

[scott h]

Seems pretty cut and dry to me, there is a law on the books, he was caught, the law enforced.

To me, his major complaint is that it was enforced on HIM!! When so many laws are not enforced.

[hk blues]

6 hours ago, scott h said:

Seems pretty cut and dry to me, there is a law on the books, he was caught, the law enforced.

To me, his major complaint is that it was enforced on HIM!! When so many laws are not enforced.

Here in Iloilo they had a crackdown on this a couple or three years back and It's much more convenient to get about now the streets are clear.  I assumed it would be short-lived but here we are a good few years on and the situation has been preserved.  

I think it's important and just another piece in the puzzle of making the country more 'modern' and hopefully developed. Same as phasing out jeepneys.