A senator has urged the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to suspend the implementation of the Motor Vehicle Inspection System (MVIS) amid “unresolved issues and complaints that have left motorists grossly disadvantaged” during the pandemic.
In a statement on Tuesday, Sen. Grace Poe, who chairs the Senate committee on public services, said that the timing of the implementation of the MVIS “could not have been worse.”
“We are still in the middle of a pandemic with no definite end in sight. Hindi ba pwedeng time-out muna habang nasa gitna pa tayo ng pandemya?” Poe said.
“The costs are prohibitive for a still imperfect system. Mula sa P500 noon na emission testing fee, naging P1,500 o triple ang iminahal ngayon ng inspection fee. Dagdag pa ito sa mismong registration fee na maaaring umabot ng higit pa sa P3,000. Para sa isang sistema na napakaraming problema, makatwiran ba ang mga bayaring ito?” she added.
The senator also lamented the lack of consultation in transitioning to the motor vehicle inspection centers from emission testing.
“Safer roads mean no shortcuts. The public must be consulted and informed every step of the way. Dapat kabahagi ang mga motorista sa paghulma ng ganitong kalaking polisiya,” she said.
As of now, only 23 out of the 138 accredited Private Motor Vehicle Inspection Centers (PMVICs) are currently operating in the country – barely enough to accommodate all vehicles that are required to register annually.
Poe pointed out that each operating PMVIC will have to inspect 173,913 cars on the average that translates to 476 cars daily, including Sundays and holidays.
PMVICs are authorized to collect an inspection fee of P1,800 for motor vehicles weighing 4,500 kilograms or less. Motorists will have to pay a re-inspection fee of P900 if the vehicle fails the initial test. For motorcycles and tricycles, they are charged P600 for the inspection fee and P300 for re-inspection.
The PMVICs are tasked to ensure that vehicles plying the roads are road worthy to avoid accidents, deaths, and damage to property. However, even local government officials have complained that some PMVICs are requiring vehicle owners to sign waivers that Poe said is red flag.
