Rama and the car towing issue

ACTING Mayor Michael Rama is right. One who parks his car illegally knows the risk. He therefore deserves no further notice or warning before the vehicle can be towed.




An exception should, however, be made for people who are responding to or are involved in an emergency. It is unchristian to punish a driver who, in his rush to have a loved one receive immediate medical attention in the hospital emergency room, leaves his car in a no-parking zone.



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But that is the practice today as a local judge found out to his dismay and frustration. When he came back from the ER, he found that his car was gone, towed by the Citom, according to bystanders.



Wanting to make money is not bad per se. But car towing companies-–the ones that the duly-elected mayor favored with the franchise business of towing-–seem to have forgotten the public interest side of their being along the way. The purpose of towing is to clear the streets of obstruction, not to make some people rich or richer.



Rama should also clarify whether car towing is a penalty or simply a tool to enforce a penalty for a traffic violation. This is not hair-splitting. There have been cases where the owner arrived when the towing crew was trying to hook his car to the truck. In one of these cases, the owner-–a lawyer-–offered to just pay the penalty for his violation in exchange for his car’s release. The Citom refused.



Why? Is it because Tomas Osmeña’s accredited car towing companies would not make money if the fine was paid right there and then? Or is car towing now a separate penalty, independent of the fine, under the city’s traffic ordinance?



Rama knows that his time as mayor is borrowed. Osmeña can return anytime. It was therefore brave of the acting mayor to order a review of the car towing setup. It would, however, take more bravery on his part to include in his review the system of awarding car towing contracts. The regular mayor has brushed aside claims that the contract can be awarded only upon public bidding.

Rama is a lawyer. But it takes more than just knowledge of the law to get things done correctly. It also requires courage. Let’s see if Rama is up to it.

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