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It's a miracle!
Yesterday around 1 p.m., I became a victim of an ASBU
(Anti Smoke Belching Unit) from the Pasay City LGU at EDSA-Rodriguez.
Profiling
The vehicle that I was operating was a Hyundai Starex
with a diesel engine. It was not emitting any visible smoke yet I was pulled
over for "testing". This is obviously apprehension without cause. I
surmise that the only reason is that the vehicle has a diesel engine.
Improper Testing
I was asked to step out of the driver's seat so that they
could conduct their "test". I chose to stand by the driver side door
so I could monitor the RPM gauge but I was asked to step away from the vehicle.
They revved the engine. It emitted black smoke as all diesel engines do when
revved in a certain way and near its redline. Then they showed me the result of
the test from their machine. It came out 9.66 way above the 3.5 regulated by
law.
I did not believe this because the vehicle had just passed the emission test two months ago for its annual registration. But, there was no point arguing with them. I had no means to refute their claim. I surrendered my driver's license and opted for a ticket and went on my way to do a whole afternoon's worth of errands.
And, no, the buses and jeepneys that passed by that had very visible smoke coming out of their tail pipes did not get pulled over. Just the private diesel vehicles. The buses and jeepneys must have paid up beforehand.
Properly Tested
This morning, I brought the vehicle to an LTO accredited
emissions testing center. It passed with a score of 0.83. Way below the
regulated standard. There was nothing done to the vehicle. No repairs. No tune
ups. No washing of the tail pipe. Jesus Christ's mechanic must have visited the
vehicle in the night to fix a 9.66 into a 0.83!
The personnel at the emissions testing center think that
the ASBU did not gradually rev and over-revved the engine to produce a high
result. The ASBU did not follow the proper way to conduct an emission test.
Extortion
That's what it is. Extortion.
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The ASBUs have legal basis for their indiscriminate and arbitrary apprehensions, the Clean Air Act
of 1999 (Republic Act 8749). DENR + LGUs are among the implementing agencies. The
corrupt and extortionists among LGUs see it as a big opportunity for extortion. The
Mayors generally know that it is a tool for extortion but they allow it because
these guys are among their political supporters, and somehow the fines from
"smoke emission" give additional money to city halls. The fines are P1,000 for the First
Offense, Second Offense, P3,000; and Third Offense, P5,000 and
attend a seminar on pollution management. So somehow it is a decentralized, deliberate racket.
Rad added,
Sure they have the Clean Air Act behind them but that
does not mean they can abuse it and perform illegal apprehensions and perform
improper testing.
Flagging diesel vehicles that do not visibly smoke belch
to the side of the road just because they run on diesel is similar to flagging
down Ferraris running below the speed limit just because they have the capacity
to go over the speed limit. And then they perform the emissions test
improperly, against the letter of the law. They even have a history of brand
new, no plate yet, vehicles that failed.
So they violate the law twice to enforce a law.
More people should blog or make direct complaint against these ASBUs. If they notice, the Mayors included, that they are always on social
media, they should be ashamed, hopefully. Like what happened to ASBU Makati. Until now they are still deactivated.
------------See also:
Anti-Smoke Belching Racket, Part 2, September 15, 2011
Anti-Smoke Belching Racket, Part 3, November 25, 2011
Anti-Smoke Belching Racket, Part 4, September 25, 2012
Anti-Smoke Belching Racket, Part 5, April 02, 2013
MMDA, LGUs and Towing Racket, November 26, 2012
