Eco group calls for subsidized vehicle inspections at MVICs

MANILA – An environmental group on Thursday called for subsidized vehicle inspections at motor vehicle inspection centers (MVICs) to retain the environmental, health, and safety advantages of MVICs over Private Emission Testing Centers (PETCs) while easing the economic burden on vehicle owners.

In a statement, Clean Air Philippines Movement Inc. (CAPMI) president Dr. Leo Olarte has asked Congress to sponsor a bill authorizing government subsidy for MVICs to lower vehicle inspection fees during the Covid-19 pandemic instead of stopping mandatory inspections at these establishments.

“Our life-threatening problems on respiratory and cardiovascular diseases due to unabated motor vehicle emissions, the needless Filipino deaths yearly due to road accidents or crashes, and of course the equally urgent global problem on climate change cannot wait to be addressed anymore,” Olarte said.

Olarte said operation of MVICs is mandated under the Clean Air Act of 1999 and other land transportation laws, noting that health and safety risks brought by non-roadworthy vehicles “are more dangerous than Covid-19.”

“Let us help mitigate the pain and suffering of our people due to Covid-19 as we seriously fight an equally deadly and continuous threat to human health, life, and limb plus the global climate emergency brought about by air pollution from unabated motor vehicle emissions worldwide,” Olarte said.

During an online presser, Transportation Assistant Secretary Giovanni Lopez said the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Land Transportation Office (LTO) will look into providing assistance to MVICs.

This, after President Rodrigo Roa Duterte ordered not to make mandatory vehicle inspections at MVICs as a requirement for vehicle registration at the LTO due to its expensive fees and complaints on its results.

“Susuriin po natin ang libro, susuriin po natin ang ating budget, at kung meron po, ay handa kaming tumulong po (We will look into our books, our budget, and if we find enough funds, we are ready to help),” Lopez said.

Meanwhile, Inigo Larrazabal, president of the Vehicle Inspection Center Operators Association of the Philippines (VICOAP), said their group will not ask “for a single peso from this government” and instead asked critics of their operations both in Congress and the Senate to inspect their facilities and have MVICs “remembered as partners.”

“What we are seeking for is the understanding of our congressmen and senators that we hear you, we hear the people, and we are willing to work with each and everyone for transparency,” Larrazabal said.

In the same virtual presser, the DOTr and other stakeholders also announced that MVICs will lower inspection fees aside from waiving re-testing fees for a year.