EN BANC

[G.R. No. 148339. February 23, 2005]

LUCENA GRAND CENTRAL TERMINAL, INC., petitioner, vs. JAC LINER,

INC., respondent.

DECISION
CARPIO MORALES, J.:

Respondent, JAC Liner, Inc., a common carrier operating buses which ply various
routes to and from Lucena City, assailed, via a petition for prohibition and
injunction against the City of Lucena, its Mayor, and the Sangguniang Panlungsod of
[1]

Lucena before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Lucena City, City Ordinance Nos. 1631
and 1778 as unconstitutional on the ground that, inter alia, the same constituted an invalid
exercise of police power, an undue taking of private property, and a violation of the
constitutional prohibition against monopolies. The salient provisions of the ordinances
are:

Ordinance No. 1631 [2]

AN ORDINANCE GRANTING THE LUCENA GRAND CENTRAL TERMINAL, INC., A

FRANCHISE TO CONSTRUCT, FINANCE, ESTABLISH, OPERATE AND MAINTAIN A
COMMON BUS-JEEPNEY TERMINAL FACILITY IN THE CITY OF LUCENA

xxx

SECTION 1. There is hereby granted to the Lucena Grand Central Terminal, Inc., its successors
or assigns, hereinafter referred to as the grantee, a franchise to construct, finance, establish,
operate, and maintain a common bus-jeepney terminal facility in the City of Lucena.

SECTION 2. This franchise shall continue for a period of twenty-five years, counted from the
approval of this Ordinance, and renewable at the option of the grantee for another period of
twenty-five (25) years upon such expiration.

xxx

SECTION 4. Responsibilities and Obligations of the City Government of Lucena. During the
existence of the franchise, the City Government of Lucena shall have the following
responsibilities and obligations:

xxx
(c) It shall not grant any third party any privilege and/or concession to operate a bus, mini-bus
and/or jeepney terminal.

xxx

Ordinance No. 1778 [3]

AN ORDINANCE REGULATING THE ENTRANCE TO THE CITY OF LUCENA OF ALL

BUSES, MINI-BUSES AND OUT-OF-TOWN PASSENGER JEEPNEYS AND FOR THIS
PURPOSE, AMENDING ORDINACE NO. 1420, SERIES OF 1993, AND ORDINANCE NO.
1557, SERIES OF 1995

xxx

SECTION 1. The entrance to the City of Lucena of all buses, mini-buses and out-of-town
passenger jeepneys is hereby regulated as follows:

(a) All buses, mini-buses and out-of-town passenger jeepneys shall be prohibited from entering
the city and are hereby directed to proceed to the common terminal, for picking-up and/or
dropping of their passengers.

(b) All temporary terminals in the City of Lucena are hereby declared inoperable starting from
the effectivity of this ordinance.

xxx

SECTION 3. a) Section 1 of Ordinance No. 1557, Series of 1995, is hereby amended to read as
follows:

Buses, mini-buses, and jeepney type mini-buses from other municipalities and/or local
government units going to Lucena City are directed to proceed to the Common Terminal located
at Diversion Road, Brgy. Ilayang Dupay, to unload and load passengers.

xxx

c) Section 3 of Ordinance No. 1557, Series of 1995, is hereby amended to read as follows:

Passenger buses, mini-buses, and jeepney type mini-buses coming from other municipalities
and/or local government units shall utilize the facilities of the Lucena Grand Central Terminal at
Diversion Road, Brgy. Ilayang Dupay, this City, and no other terminals shall be situated
inside or within the City of Lucena;

d) Section 4 of Ordinance No. 1557, Series of 1995, is hereby amended to read as follows:
Passenger buses, mini-buses, and jeepney type mini-buses coming from other municipalities
and/or local government units shall avail of the facilities of the Lucena Grand Central Terminal
which is hereby designated as the officially sanctioned common terminal for the City of Lucena;

e) Section 5 of Ordinance No. 1557, Series of 1995, is hereby amended to read as follows:

The Lucena Grand Central Terminal is the permanent common terminal as this is the entit
y which was given the exclusive franchise by the Sangguniang Panglungsod under Ordinan
ce No. 1631;(Emphasis and underscoring supplied)

These ordinances, by granting an exclusive franchise for twenty five years, renewable
for another twenty five years, to one entity for the construction and operation of one
common bus and jeepney terminal facility in Lucena City, to be located outside the city
proper, were professedly aimed towards alleviating the traffic congestion alleged to have
been caused by the existence of various bus and jeepney terminals within the city, as the
Explanatory Note-Whereas Clause adopting Ordinance No. 1778 states:

WHEREAS, in line with the worsening traffic condition of the City of Lucena, and with the
purpose of easing and regulating the flow of the same, it is imperative that the Buses, Mini-Buses
and out-of-town jeepneys be prohibited from maintaining terminals within the City, but instead
directing to proceed to the Lucena Grand Central Terminal for purposes of picking-up and/or
dropping off their passengers;[4]

Respondent, who had maintained a terminal within the city, was one of those affected
by the ordinances.
Petitioner, Lucena Grand Central Terminal, Inc., claiming legal interest as the grantee
of the exclusive franchise for the operation of the common terminal, was allowed to
[5]

intervene in the petition before the trial court.

In the hearing conducted on November 25, 1998, all the parties agreed to dispense
with the presentation of evidence and to submit the case for resolution solely on the basis
of the pleadings filed.[6]

By Order of March 31, 1999, Branch 54 of the Lucena RTC rendered judgment, the
[7]

dispositive portion of which reads:

WHEREFORE, in view of the foregoing premises, judgment is hereby rendered, as follows:

1. Declaring City Ordinance No. 1631 as valid, having been issued in the exercise of the police
power of the City Government of Lucena insofar as the grant of franchise to the Lucena Grand
Central Terminal, Inc., to construct, finance, establish, operate and maintain common bus-
jeepney terminal facility in the City of Lucena;

2. But however, declaring the provision of Sec. 4(c) of Ordinance No. 1631 to the effect that the
City Government shall not grant any third party any privilege and/or concession to operate a bus,
mini-bus and/or jeepney terminal, as illegal and ultra vires because it contravenes the provisions
of Republic Act No. 7160, otherwise known as The Local Government Code;
3. Declaring City Ordinance No. 1778 as null and void, the same being also an ultra vires act of
the City Government of Lucena arising from an invalid, oppressive and unreasonable exercise of
the police power, more specifically, declaring illegal [sections 1(b), 3(c) and 3(e)];

4. Ordering the issuance of a Writ of Prohibition and/or Injunction directing the respondents
public officials, the City Mayor and the Sangguniang Panglungsod of Lucena, to cease and
desist from implementing Ordinance No. 1778 insofar as said ordinance prohibits or
curtails petitioner from maintaining and operating its own bus terminal subject to the
conditions provided for in Ordinance No. 1557, Sec. 3, which authorizes the construction of
terminal outside the poblacion of Lucena City; and likewise, insofar as said ordinance directs
and compels the petitioner to use the Lucena Grand Central Terminal Inc., and
furthermore, insofar as it declares that no other terminals shall be situated, constructed,
maintained or established inside or within the City of Lucena; and furthermore,

5. The Motion to Dismiss filed by the Intervenor, Lucena Grand Central Terminal Inc., dated
October 19, 1998, is hereby DENIED for lack of merit.

SO ORDERED. (Emphasis and underscoring supplied) [8]

Petitioners Motion for Reconsideration of the trial courts order having been denied
[9]

by Order of August 6, 1999, it elevated it via petition for review under Rule 45 before
[10]

this Court. This Court, by Resolution of November 24, 1999, referred the petition to the
[11] [12]

Court of Appeals with which it has concurrent jurisdiction, no special and important reason
having been cited for it to take cognizance thereof in the first instance.
By Decision of December 15, 2000, the appellate court dismissed the petition and
[13]

affirmed the challenged orders of the trial court. Its motion for reconsideration having
[14]

been denied by the appellate court by Resolution dated June 5, 2001, petitioner once
[15]

again comes to this Court via petition for review, this time assailing the Decision and
[16]

Resolution of the Court of Appeals.

Decision on the petition hinges on two issues, to wit: (1) whether the trial court has
jurisdiction over the case, it not having furnished the Office of the Solicitor General copy
of the orders it issued therein, and (2) whether the City of Lucena properly exercised its
police power when it enacted the subject ordinances.
Petitioner argues that since the trial court failed to serve a copy of its assailed orders
upon the Office of the Solicitor General, it never acquired jurisdiction over the case, it
citingSection 22, Rule 3 of the Rules which provides:

SEC. 22. Notice to the Solicitor General.In any action involving the validity of any treaty,
law, ordinance, executive order, presidential decree, rules or regulations, the court in its
discretion, may require the appearance of the Solicitor General who may be heard in person or
through representative duly designated by him. (Emphasis and underscoring supplied)

Furthermore, petitioner invokes Sections 3 and 4 of Rule 63 which respectively

provide:
SEC. 3. Notice on Solicitor General. In any action which involves the validity of a statute,
executive order or regulation, or any other governmental regulation, the Solicitor General shall
be notified by the party assailing the same and shall be entitled to be heard upon such question.

SEC. 4. Local government ordinances. In any action involving the validity of a local government
ordinance, the corresponding prosecutor or attorney of the local government unit involved shall
be similarly notified and entitled to be heard. If such ordinance is alleged to be unconstitutional,
the Solicitor General shall also be notified and entitled to be heard. (Emphasis and underscoring
supplied)

Nowhere, however, is it stated in the above-quoted rules that failure to notify the
Solicitor General about the action is a jurisdictional defect.
In fact, Rule 3, Section 22 gives the courts in any action involving the validity of
any ordinance, inter alia, discretion to notify the Solicitor General.
Section 4 of Rule 63, which more specifically deals with cases assailing
the constitutionality, not just the validity, of a local government ordinance, directs that the
Solicitor General shallalso be notified and entitled to be heard. Who will notify him, Sec.
3 of the same rule provides it is the party which is assailing the local governments
ordinance.
More importantly, however, this Court finds that no procedural defect, fatal or
otherwise, attended the disposition of the case. For respondent actually served a copy of
its petition upon the Office of the Solicitor General on October 1, 1998, two days after it
was filed. The Solicitor General has issued a Certification to that effect. There was thus
[17]

compliance with above-quoted rules.

Respecting the issue of whether police power was properly exercised when the
subject ordinances were enacted: As with the State, the local government may be
considered as having properly exercised its police power only if the following requisites
are met: (1) the interests of the public generally, as distinguished from those of a particular
class, require the interference of the State, and (2) the means employed are reasonably
necessary for the attainment of the object sought to be accomplished and not unduly
oppressive upon individuals. Otherwise stated, there must be a concurrence of a lawful
subject and lawful method. [18]

That traffic congestion is a public, not merely a private, concern, cannot be gainsaid.
In Calalang v. Williams which involved a statute authorizing the Director of Public Works
[19]

to promulgate rules and regulations to regulate and control traffic on national roads, this
Court held:

In enacting said law, therefore, the National Assembly was prompted by considerations of public
convenience and welfare. It was inspired by a desire to relieve congestion of traffic, which is, to
say the least, a menace to public safety. Public welfare, then, lies at the bottom of the enactment
of said law, and the state in order to promote the general welfare may interfere with personal
liberty, with property, and with business and occupations. (Emphasis supplied)
[20]
 The questioned ordinances having been enacted with the objective of relieving traffic
congestion in the City of Lucena, they involve public interest warranting the interference
of the State. The first requisite for the proper exercise of police power is thus present.
Respondents suggestion to have this Court look behind the explicit objective of the
ordinances which, to it, was actually to benefit the private interest of petitioner by coercing
all bus operators to patronize its terminal does not lie. Lim v. Pacquing instructs:
[21] [22]

. . . [T]his Court cannot look into allegations that PD No. 771 was enacted to benefit a select
group which was later given authority to operate the jai-alai under PD No. 810. The examination
of legislative motivation is generally prohibited. (Palmer v. Thompson, 403 U.S. 217, 29 L. Ed.
2d 438 [1971] per Black, J.) There is, in the first place, absolute lack of evidence to support
ADCs allegation of improper motivation in the issuance of PD No. 771. In the second place, as
already averred, this Court cannot go behind the expressed and proclaimed purposes of PD No.
771, which are reasonable and even laudable. (Underscoring supplied) [23]

This leaves for determination the issue of whether the means employed by the
Lucena Sangguniang Panlungsod to attain its professed objective were reasonably
necessary and not unduly oppressive upon individuals.
With the aim of localizing the source of traffic congestion in the city to a single
location, the subject ordinances prohibit the operation of all bus and jeepney terminals
[24]

within Lucena, including those already existing, and allow the operation of only one
common terminal located outside the city proper, the franchise for which was granted to
petitioner. The common carriers plying routes to and from Lucena City are thus compelled
to close down their existing terminals and use the facilities of petitioner.
In De la Cruz v. Paras, this Court declared unconstitutional an ordinance
[25]

characterized by overbreadth. In that case, the Municipality of Bocaue, Bulacan prohibited

the operation of all night clubs, cabarets and dance halls within its jurisdiction for the
protection of public morals. Held the Court:

It cannot be said that such a sweeping exercise of a lawmaking power by Bocaue could qualify u
nder the term reasonable. The objective of fostering public morals, a worthy and desirable end ca
n be attainedby a measure that does not encompass too wide a field. Certainly the ordinance on it
s face is characterized by overbreadth. The purpose sought to be achieved could have been attain
ed by reasonablerestrictions rather than by an absolute prohibition. The admonition in Salaveria
should be heeded: The Judiciary should not lightly set aside legislative action when there is not a
clear invasion of personal or property rights under the guise of police regulation. It is clear that in
the guise of a police regulation, there was in this instance a clear invasion of personal or property
rights, personal in the case of those individuals desirous of patronizing those night clubs and
property in terms of the investments made and salaries to be earned by those therein employed.
(Underscoring supplied) [26]

In Lupangco v. Court of Appeals, this Court, in declaring unconstitutional the

[27]

resolution subject thereof, advanced a similar consideration. That case involved a

resolution issued by the Professional Regulation Commission which prohibited
examinees from attending review classes and receiving handout materials, tips, and the
like three days before the date of examination in order to preserve the integrity and purity
of the licensure examinations in accountancy. Besides being unreasonable on its face
and violative of academic freedom, the measure was found to be more sweeping than
what was necessary, viz:

Needless to say, the enforcement of Resolution No. 105 is not a guarantee that the alleged
leakages in the licensure examinations will be eradicated or at least minimized. Making the
examinees suffer by depriving them of legitimate means of review or preparation on those last
three precious days when they should be refreshing themselves with all that they have learned in
the review classes and preparing their mental and psychological make-up for the examination
day itself would be like uprooting the tree to get rid of a rotten branch. What is needed to
be done by the respondent is to find out the source of such leakages and stop it right
there. If corrupt officials or personnel should be terminated from their loss, then so be it. Fixers
or swindlers should be flushed out. Strict guidelines to be observed by examiners should be set
up and if violations are committed, then licenses should be suspended or revoked. x x x
(Emphasis and underscoring supplied) [28]

As in De la Cruz and Lupangco, the ordinances assailed herein are characterized

[29] [30]

by overbreadth. They go beyond what is reasonably necessary to solve the traffic

problem. Additionally, since the compulsory use of the terminal operated by petitioner
would subject the users thereof to fees, rentals and charges, such measure is unduly
oppressive, as correctly found by the appellate court. What should have been done was
[31]

to determine exactly where the problem lies and then to stop it right there.

The true role of Constitutional Law is to effect an equilibrium between authority and liberty so
that rights are exercised within the framework of the law and the laws are enacted with due
deference to rights. (Underscoring supplied) [32]

A due deference to the rights of the individual thus requires a more careful formulation
of solutions to societal problems.
From the memorandum filed before this Court by petitioner, it is gathered that the
[33]

Sangguniang Panlungsod had identified the cause of traffic congestion to be the

indiscriminate loading and unloading of passengers by buses on the streets of the city
proper, hence, the conclusion that the terminals contributed to the proliferation of buses
obstructing traffic on the city streets.
Bus terminals per se do not, however, impede or help impede the flow of traffic. How
the outright proscription against the existence of all terminals, apart from that franchised
to petitioner, can be considered as reasonably necessary to solve the traffic problem, this
Court has not been enlightened. If terminals lack adequate space such that bus drivers
are compelled to load and unload passengers on the streets instead of inside the
terminals, then reasonable specifications for the size of terminals could be instituted, with
permits to operate the same denied those which are unable to meet the specifications.
In the subject ordinances, however, the scope of the proscription against the
maintenance of terminals is so broad that even entities which might be able to provide
facilities better than the franchised terminal are barred from operating at all.
 Petitioner argues, however, that other solutions for the traffic problem have already
been tried but proven ineffective. But the grant of an exclusive franchise to petitioner has
not been shown to be the only solution to the problem.
While the Sangguniang Panlungsod, via Ordinance No. 1557, previously directed
[34]

bus owners and operators to put up their terminals outside the poblacion of Lucena City,
petitioner informs that said ordinance only resulted in the relocation of terminals to
other well-populated barangays, thereby giving rise to traffic congestion in those
areas. Assuming that information to be true, the Sangguniang Panlungsod was not
[35]

without remedy. It could have defined, among other considerations, in a more precise
manner, the area of relocation to avoid such consequences.
As for petitioners argument that the challenged ordinances were enacted pursuant to
the power of the Sangguniang Panlungsod to [r]egulate traffic on all streets and
bridges; prohibitencroachments or obstacles thereon and, when necessary in the interest
of public welfare, authorize the removal of encroachments and illegal constructions in
public places: Absent any showing, nay allegation, that the terminals are encroaching
[36]

upon public roads, they are not obstacles. The buses which indiscriminately load and
unload passengers on the city streets are. The power then of the Sangguniang
Panlungsod to prohibit encroachments and obstacles does not extend to terminals.
Neither are terminals public nuisances as petitioner argues. For their operation is a
legitimate business which, by itself, cannot be said to be injurious to the rights of property,
health, or comfort of the community.
But even assuming that terminals are nuisances due to their alleged indirect effects
upon the flow of traffic, at most they are nuisance per accidens, not per se.
Unless a thing is nuisance per se, however, it may not be abated via an ordinance,
without judicial proceedings, as was done in the case at bar.
In Estate of Gregoria Francisco v. Court of Appeals, this Court held:
[37]

Respondents can not seek cover under the general welfare clause authorizing the abatement of
nuisances without judicial proceedings. That tenet applies to a nuisance per se, or one which
affects the immediate safety of persons and property and may be summarily abated under the
undefined law of necessity (Monteverde v. Generoso, 52 Phil. 123 [1982]). The storage of copra
in the quonset building is a legitimate business. By its nature, it can not be said to be injurious to
rights of property, of health or of comfort of the community. If it be a nuisance per accidens it
may be so proven in a hearing conducted for that purpose. It is not per se a nuisance warranting
its summary abatement without judicial intervention. (Underscoring supplied) [38]

In Pampanga Bus Co., Inc. v. Municipality of Tarlac where the appellant-

[39]

municipality similarly argued that the terminal involved therein is a nuisance that may be
abated by the Municipal Council via an ordinance, this Court held: Suffice it to say that in
the abatement of nuisances the provisions of the Civil Code (Articles 694-707) must be
observed and followed. This appellant failed to do.
As for petitioners claim that the challenged ordinances have actually been proven
effective in easing traffic congestion: Whether an ordinance is effective is an issue
different from whether it is reasonably necessary. It is its reasonableness, not its
effectiveness, which bears upon its constitutionality. If the constitutionality of a law were
measured by its effectiveness, then even tyrannical laws may be justified whenever they
happen to be effective.
The Court is not unaware of the resolutions of various barangays in Lucena City
supporting the establishment of a common terminal, and similar expressions of support
from the private sector, copies of which were submitted to this Court by petitioner. The
weight of popular opinion, however, must be balanced with that of an individuals rights.

There is no question that not even the strongest moral conviction or the most urgent public need,
subject only to a few notable exceptions, will excuse the bypassing of an individual's rights. It is
no exaggeration to say that a person invoking a right guaranteed under Article III of the
Constitution is a majority of one even as against the rest of the nation who would deny him that
right.
[40]

WHEREFORE, the petition is hereby DENIED.

SO ORDERED.