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Stakeholders expressed disappointment over the veto of a bill that that would have created the Philippine Transportation Safety Board
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President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr vetoed the measure because he said it would only duplicate functions of other agencies and cause confusion
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The Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines, Safe Travel Alliance, and International Air Transport Association, however, said there are limitations on the ability of various investigating agencies to ascertain the real cause of transport accidents
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The groups remain committed to pursuing enactment of the bill under the 19th Congress
The Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines (JFC), Safe Travel Alliance, and International Air Transport Association “expressed disappointment” over President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.’s veto of the bill that that would have created the Philippine Transportation Safety Board (PTSB).
In his veto letter on July 30, Marcos said the functions intended for the proposed PTSB are already being undertaken by different agencies, adding that a new body will only “create functional duplication, confusion as to authority, ineffectiveness, and deficiency in the performance of the responsibilities.”
In a joint statement, the groups, however, said “there are limitations on the ability of the investigating agencies to delve deeper and find forensic evidence on the real cause of the accidents or by witnesses of the accidents.”
They added: “Because most of these agencies are also tasked to regulate and/or operate the sector, there is an inherent conflict of interest in the performance of their duties as an investigating body.”
Agencies that presently handle different sectors of transportation with regard to accident investigations include the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, Land Transportation Office, Philippine Coast Guard, Aircraft Accident Investigation and Inquiry Board, and Maritime Industry Authority, all under the Department of Transportation, as well as the Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation.
“As an independent and impartial transport safety body following the example of various countries, the PTSB would have addressed regulatory gaps in the transport safety bureaucracy, facilitated the enhancement of transportation safety measures and standards, and coordinated all the actions of relevant public and private entities toward the common goal of ensuring transport safety,” the groups said.
They pointed out that the vetoed PTSB measure sought the creation of a non-regulatory and independent agency attached to the Office of the President that will act as lead agency “for the conduct of impartial and science-based investigation on transportation-related accidents and incidents.
“The main objectives of the PTSB are: (a) to improve transportation safety measures to help prevent transportation accidents and mitigate of dangers to human lives and property; and (b) to upgrade transportation safety standards and create implementing rules to prevent accidents and incidents based on factual scientific findings of past accidents and/or incidents.”
Noting that similar bills failed to secure Congressional approval for over two decades, the groups said: “Only in the 18th Congress did this important reform reach the most advanced stage in both chambers and the president’s desk.”
They said they “repeatedly expressed support for the creation of the PTSB in the 18th Congress, including through letters sent to relevant Cabinet secretaries, and the groups remain committed to pursuing enactment of the bill in the 19th Congress.”
The joint statement was supported by JFC members the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Australian-New Zealand Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Canadian Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Philippines, Inc., Korean Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Inc.; and Philippine Association of Multinational Companies Regional Headquarters, Inc.
The vetoed House Bill No. 9030/Senate Bill No. 1077, or “An Act Establishing the Philippine Transportation Safety Board, Defining its Powers and Functions, and Appropriating Funds Therefore”, called for the creation of a seven-member board that would investigate air, highway, railroad, pipeline and maritime accidents.
Sponsored by Senator Grace Poe, the transport safety board bill was ratified by Congress in a plenary session on June 1, 2022 after the House of Representatives and Senate reconciled their respective versions.
