Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

Seventeenth Congress
First Regular Session

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
H.B. No.

Introduced by Representative H. Harry L. Roque Jr.

AN ACT
AMENDING ACT NO, 3815, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE PENAL
CODE,
BY PENALIZING ROBBERY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION VEHICLE
AND RELATED THINGS

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Constitution, Article 2, Section 5, provides:

SEC. 5. The maintenance of peace and order,
the protection of life, liberty, and property, and the
promotion of the general welfare are essential for the
enjoyment by all the people of the blessings of
democracy.

The safety of our riding public is the ultimate consideration in crafting
transportation policies. As such, our laws are geared towards making our
common carriers, or public transport providers liable for any harm that might
befall the passengers. They are required exercise not only ordinary diligence,
but extraordinary diligence. The extraordinary diligence required of common


carriers demands that they take care of the goods or lives entrusted to their

hands as if they were their own.!

' Spouses Cruz v. Sun Holidays, 622 SCRA 389 (2010)

2


The Civil Code, Article 1755 provides:

Art. 1755. A common carrier is bound to carry
the passengers safely as far as human care and
foresight can provide, using the utmost diligence of
very cautious persons, with a due regard for all the
circumstances.

However, while the law requires the highest degree of diligence from
common carriers in the safe transport of their passengers and creates a
presumption of negligence against them, it does not however, make the carrier

and insurer of the absolute safety of its passengers.*

It is clear that neither the law nor the nature of the business of a
transportation company makes it an insurer of the passenger's safety, but that its
liability for personal injuries sustained by its passenger rests upon its
negligence, its failure to exercise the degree of diligence that the law requires.’

The law does not protect the passengers from acts of other people that
increase the risk of harm not only to the passengers but to the transport

providers as well,

Just recently, the Philippine National Railway had to suspend. its

operations after one of their trains was derailed in Makati City. PNP

* Pilapil v. CA, 180 SCRA 546 (1989)
Id.


spokesperson Paul de Quiros said missing rail joints, angle bars, and rail clips,
which were likely pilfered, had caused the derailment,*

While the robbers see these items as mere scraps of metal, which they can
sell for quick money, they are essential to the safety and proper functioning of
our public transport system. As such, stealing them not only results in loss of
property but more importantly, may cause the loss of lives.

Thus, a special policy consideration must be made against persons who
steal from public transport systems and deter the possible offenders from
endangering the lives of the public transport passengers.

This bill seeks to create a separate act of robbery under the Penal Code

with higher penalty for the robbery of all or part of a public transportation
vehicles, spare parts, or safety devices, or of public transportation fixtures or
equipment, including railroad tracks.

H. HARRY L. ROQUE JR.

“~ 1, This bill was originally filed by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago in the Sixteenth Congress, Second
Regular Session

“ Francisco, Katerina. “PNR Suspends Train Service indefinitely URL
<http:/;www rappler com/nation’92237-pnr-operations-suspended-indefinitely> Rappler 5 May 2015


ween

Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

Seventeenth Congress
First Regular Session

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
H.B. No.

Introduced by Representative H. Harry L. Roque Jr.

AN ACT
AMENDING ACT NO. 3815, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE PENAL
CODE,
BY PENALIZING ROBBERY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION VEHICLE
AND RELATED THINGS

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
Philippines in Congress assembled:
SECTION 1. Short Title. — This Act shall be known as “Public Transport

Preservation Act.”

SECTION 2. Article 302-A of Act No. 3815, otherwise known as the
Penal Code, is hereby inserted after Article 302, which shall read as follows:
ART. 302-A. Robbery of Public Transportation Vehicle and
Related Things. — In cases enumerated in Articles 299 and 302,
when the robbery consists in the taking of all or part of a public

transportation vehicles, spare parts, or safety devices, or of public


transportation fixtures or equipment, including railroad tracks, the
offender shall suffer the penalty next higher in degree than that

prescribed in the said articles.

SECTION 3. Repealing Clause. — All laws, decrees, orders, rules, and
regulations, or parts thereof, inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are
hereby repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.

SECTION 4. Effectivity Clause. — This Act shall take effect after fifteen
(15) days following its publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general

circulation.

Approved,