Hacienda Luisita’s SCTEX toll fee anomalous — Anakpawis
The access road and the interchange were constructed and paid for by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority, and yet Hacienda Luisita Inc. charges toll fees; the farmers were not given their share of the sale of the right of way, and the Cojuangco family did not pay the government for royalty fees for the quarrying activities.
by INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
Bulatlat.com
Anakpawis Rep. Rafael V. Mariano today called on the Lower House to conduct a probe on the illegal collection of P20 (US$.465) toll fee by the Hacienda Luisita Inc. (HLI) from motorists using the San Miguel access road inside the Luisita enclave to reach the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX).
In House resolution 1329, Mariano said that the HLI did not pay for the construction of the interchange and has no legal right to impose fees on commuters using the interchange. He said all the costs of the road construction was shouldered by the contractor of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), the owner and operator of SCTEX.
According to reports, the HLI started to collect a P20 (US$.465) toll or service fee from motorists passing the access road in Barangay San Miguel inside the Hacienda Luisita enclave to reach the SCTEX last May 17, 2011. HLI co-owner Jose ‘Peping’ Cojuangco Jr., uncle of President Benigno Simeon Aquino III, told the media that the toll fee is for road maintenance and repair.
According to Anakpawis Rep. Rafael Mariano, the Hacienda Luisita Incorporated did not pay for the construction of the interchange and has no legal right to impose fees on commuters using it. He said that all the costs of the road construction was shouldered by the contractor of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), the owner and operator of SCTEX. (Photo by bulatlat.com)
“It has come to our attention that the HLI did not seek permission from the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB), saying that the TRB has no jurisdiction over Luisita because it is a private land and not part of the expressway. Based on reports, although the HLI delivered on its commitment to BCDA to build an access road inside the sugar estate in Tarlac, it did not pledge to make it toll-free for the users of SCTEX,” he said.
In the meantime, the BCDA has issued clarifications that the interchange was built to connect Luisita to Subic and Clark economic zones and the San Miguel access road was built for public use. BCDA reported spending P34.106 billion(US$79, 316) on the project, which was funded by loans from the Japanese government (79 percent) and a counterpart fund from the Philippine government (21 percent). The BCDA bought 80 hectares from HLI for the right-of-way of the SCTEx and the Luisita interchange..... MORE
Source: Bulatlat.com
URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/06/01/charging-of-toll-fee-by-hacienda-luisita-for-access-to-subic-clark-tarlac-expressway-anomalous-anakpawis-party-list/
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