'No vaccination, no ride policy' enforced in NCR public transportation

Commuters in the National Capital Region had to present their vaccination cards before they were allowed to board public transportation vehicles on Monday, the first day of the implementation of the "no vaccination, no ride" policy.

At the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT3) North Avenue Station in Quezon City, passengers had to go through a control point and show their vaccination cards before they were allowed to go to the platform, according to a report on Unang Balita.

In an interview on Dobol B TV, MRT3 Director for Operations Engineer Michael Capati said 11 individuals were so far not allowed to board the trains after they were found to be not fully vaccinated.

"Meron ding single dose na hindi ina-allow," Capati said.

(There were those who only had a single dose [of vaccine] who were not allowed [to board trains].)

He advised passengers to have their vaccination cards and valid IDs ready even before they reach the control point so as not to cause delay.

At the Light Rail Transit 1 Monumento Station, the line of passengers got longer as security personnel checked vaccination cards.

At the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX), meanwhile, personnel strictly checked passengers' vaccination cards before allowing them to board buses, according to a report by Bam Alegre on Unang Balita.

In Caloocan City, jeepney drivers plying the Monumento route had difficulty ensuring their passengers were fully vaccinated, as they also had to collect their fare while driving, according to a report by James Agustin on Unang Balita.

Meanwhile, personnel of the Philippine National Police-Highway Patrol Group (PNP-HPG) found one jeepney driver in Caloocan City who himself had only one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, according to a report by Allan Gatus on Dobol B TV.

The PNP-HPG personnel advised the jeepeney driver to get his second dose of COVID-19.

FLASH REPORT: Isang tsuper ng pampasaherong jeep, nasampolan sa unang implementasyon ng 'no vaccination, no ride' policy sa Caloocan City; isang pasahero na hindi pa nakakumpleto ng bakuna, pinababa rin. | via @allangatus pic.twitter.com/mENCebuCLb

— DZBB Super Radyo (@dzbb) January 16, 2022

A passenger on the same jeepney was also found to have only one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. PNP-HPG personnel asked the passenger to disembark and get vaccinated.

Meanwhile, on Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City, five unvaccinated bus passengers were asked to disembark by personnel of the Inter-Agency Council for Traffic (I-ACT), according to a report by Allan Gatus on Dobol B TV.

One of the passengers said he was going to a vaccination site the other day to get inoculated against COVID-19, but he did not make the cut-off.

Personnel of Task Force Disiplina said they will escort the five passengers to a vaccination site on Monday morning using their own mobile vehicle.

FLASH REPORT: Limang pasahero sa Commonwealth Ave., QC, pinababa ng mga tauhan ng I-ACT matapos makitang hindi pa bakunado laban sa COVID-19. | via @allangatus pic.twitter.com/IRCQv063dI

— DZBB Super Radyo (@dzbb) January 16, 2022

‘Unconstitutional’

Meanwhile, Public Attorney's Office (PAO) chief Persida Acosta said the recent policy requiring commuters to present their vaccination cards before boarding public vehicles is unconstitutional and discriminatory.

“I think the policy of the LGUs is highly unconstitutional and against the law,” Acosta told ANC.

Acosta cited Republic Act 11525 which states that vaccine cards “shall not be considered an additional mandatory requirement for educational, employment, and other similar government transaction purposes.”

“And yet they are circumventing. Lalabag nila ‘yung batas indirectly para mapiitan kang magpabakuna. You need magpabakuna para pasakayin ka. Ano ‘yun pinupwersa,” Acosta said.

(And yet they are circumventing. You will indirectly violate the law so you will be forced to get vaccinated. You need to get vaccinated so you will be able to board. You are being forced.)

‘Warning’

PNP-HPG-National Capital Region chief Police Lieutenant Colonel Joel Mendoza on Saturday said commuters who are unvaccinated against COVID-19 will only get a warning on the first week of the "no vaccination, no ride" policy.

However, they will still not be allowed to use public transportation, he added.

"Warning muna po within one week... Pero hindi pa rin natin pasasakayin [sa pampublikong transportasyon]. Pababalikin o pauuwiin," PNP-HPG NCR chief Police Lieutenant Colonel Joel Mendoza said in an interview on Dobol B TV.

(They will be given a warning within one week... But they will not be allowed to ride [public transportation]. They will be asked to turn back or go home.)

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) issued Department Order No. 2022-001 on January 11, 2022 which limits access to public transportation in NCR only to fully vaccinated individuals while the region is under Alert Level 3 or higher. Alert Level 3 is currently in effect in NCR until January 31.

Exempted from the “no vaccination, no ride” policy are persons with medical conditions that prevent their full COVID-19 vaccination as shown by a duly-signed medical certificate with the name and contact details of their doctor; persons who will buy essential goods and services, such as but not limited to food, water, medicine, medical devices, public utilities, energy, work, and medical and dental necessities, as shown by a duly issued barangay health pass or other proof to justify travel; and persons who are going to vaccination sites to get inoculated against COVID-19.

While the DOTr would be tolerant to unvaccinated commuters in the NCR, it said on Monday that penalties would be given to persistent violators of the “no vaccination, no ride” policy in public transportation.

In an Unang Balita interview, DOTr Undersecretary Artemio Tuazon Jr. said they would be "very tolerant but firm" in the first few days of the implementation of the policy.

“Bagama't puwede na silang tiketan, pagsasabihan muna sila. Pero kapag paulit-ulit ang violation ay talagang ti-tiketan na sila,” Tuazon said.

(While we could already give them tickets, we would only warn them first. However, if they continue to violate the policy, we would really give them tickets.)

Cases of COVID-19 continue to rise in NCR and the rest of the country. As of Sunday, 37,154 new COVID-19 cases were recorded, bringing the Philippines' caseload to 3,205,396.

The top regions with cases in the recent two weeks were the National Capital Region with 15,591 or 43%, Region IV-A with 8,384 or 23%, and Region III with 3,232 or 9%. —KG/RSJ, GMA News