Filipino News photo courtesy
MANILA — The Court of Appeals (CA) has affirmed its previous ruling, declaring the ban on back-riding for men in Mandaluyong City as unconstitutional. The CA denied the city government’s motion for reconsideration in a resolution issued on April 26.
The legal battle began in 2019 when lawyer Dino de Leon challenged the city government after being fined for violating the ordinance. De Leon lodged a complaint with the Mandaluyong Regional Trial Court after he was pulled over for riding a motorcycle taxi with a driver who wasn’t a relative.
In 2021, De Leon emerged victorious when the CA deemed the ordinance unconstitutional, oppressive, arbitrary, and discriminatory. The CA ordered the local government to cease the enforcement of the ordinances, citing their discriminatory nature based on gender and their restrictions on motorcycle use as a means of transportation.
The ordinances, criticized by commuters for being sexist, prohibited males from riding as back riders on motorcycles, with exceptions only for first-degree family members or children aged seven to ten.
The city government implemented these measures in response to instances of gun violence and other crimes involving suspects riding motorcycles.
(ai/mtvn)
