A self-confessed suki or regular buyer at auctions, Roque believes that outlawing the importation of second-hand vehicles will not do the country any good. On the contrary, he believes banning auctions will be even do the country harm since it will only encourage businessmen to smuggle vehicles and other imported second-hand equipment into the country.
Trade Secretary Manuel Roxas III was quoted last week as saying that auctions of used vehicles and heavy equipment in the Subic Freeport is illegal.
Earlier that week, the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Philippines urged President Arroyo to ban the importation of used vehicles.
But Roque said he could not understand why the government should outlaw such a profitable undertaking that provides jobs to people in Zambales, Bataan, Tarlac and Pampanga; and enables ordinary Filipinos to buy vehicles and equipment which they can never afford brand new.
"Why should we deprive our people of their right to choose?" he said. "Hayaan natin si Juan dela Cruz na makapamili ng kaya niyang bilhin."
Roque has been buying things from auctions since four years ago when American company Ritchie Brothers started the practice in the Subic Freeport. When Ritchie Brothers left, he switched to United Auctioneers Inc. which operates two auction yards in Meycauayan, Bulacan and Malinta, Valenzuela City.
He said he has never regretted a purchase he has made.
He and a cousin were both in the construction business and auctions provideded them not only with cheap used vehicles but also affordable heavy equipment such as backhoes, cranes, buldozers and others.
"Before, a 50-tonner crane was like a muse, something you could only dream of if you were in construction. But because of auctions, we were able to buy a 100-tonner crane," he said.
Roque pointed out that the auctions have benefitted local government units and people in the countryside more than anyone else. "Just look at our roads. We can now repair our roads at less cost because we have the equipment," he said.
Aside from heavy equipment, Roque and other LGU officials found the auctions ready sources of cheap but high-quality dump trucks. According to Roque, 80 to 90 percent of dump trucks used by LGUs for garbage collection came from auctions. "If there were no auctions, we could never buy any of these trucks," he explained.
Roque was quick to disagree. He said he has bought a Mitsubishi Pajero and a Toyota Landcruiser from UAI and both run as if they have not been converted at all.
A mechanical engineer by profession, Roque said he knows exactly how steering conversions should be made and that his idea of a "correct process" was just what the auctioneer who sold him his vehicles did.
"UAI replaced the gears of my Pajero with a brand new set of gears from the United States and they bought a brand new dashboard from Toyota. The wipers were also correctly installed. If I never told you, you’d never suspect that the vehicle was once a right-hand-drive," he said.
Roque also said that many seem to have forgotten that the national government itself started the practice of buying used equipment and vehicles from other countries and selling them to LGUs. It was during the time of President Corazon Aquino – late 1980s to be exact – that the Department of Interior and Local Government bought right-hand-drive vehicles and sold them to LGUs at very low prices.
"It was the government which popularized conversion of RHDs," Roque said. "If I’m not mistaken, those vehicles had plate numbers that started with OLM. Many of them are still running."
Critics of auctions also say that since majority of these vehicles have been banned from the streets of Japan, it follows that they are also a threat to the environment because of toxic emissions.
But Roque said his two sport-utility vehicles, which both run on diesel, have both passed the smoke emission standards of the Department of Transportation and Communications.
"I am a government official and I wouldn’t dare being caught in a vehicle that is a smoke belcher," he said. "In fact my six-cylinder Landcruiser is very fuel efficient that I only spend two pesos for every kilometer."
Roque’s opinion is shared by at least two board members of Bataan. Both recently bought second-hand Isuzu Big Horns which are being marketed in the country as Isuzu Troopers. "They got the 1996 4x4 Big Horns at only P600,000 each," Roque revealed. "They couldn’t afford brand new Troopers and are very satisfied with what they got at such nice prices."