Makati court stops drive to remove billboards

MANILA, Philippines -  A Makati court has issued an order suspending a campaign by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to remove billboards along major streets in the metropolis.

In an order dated Sept. 1, Judge Elpidio Calis of Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 133 granted the petition for a temporary restraining order (TRO) sought by the Makati-based Outdoor Advertising Association of the Philippines (OAAP).

The court specifically ordered the suspension of the implementation of MMDA Memorandum Circular No. 10, Series of 2011 and MMDA Regulation No. 04-004 Series of 2004, which prescribe the guidelines in the display and installation of billboards and advertising signs along major and secondary roads and open spaces within the metropolis.

The court set the hearing of OAAP’s petition for writ of preliminary injunction on Friday.

In its petition filed Aug. 25, the OAAP said the MMDA exceeded the authority provided under its charter when it started dismantling and rolling down advertising materials installed in different billboards along major roads, including EDSA.

The OAAP, an umbrella organization of outdoor advertisers, alleged the MMDA violated the proprietary rights of its members when it launched its billboard crackdown last May “in complete disregard (of) the procedures outlined in the law and without according due process.”

The OAAP said the Supreme Court, in the MMDA versus Bel-Air Association case, ruled that the agency has no legislative and police powers to enact and implement ordinances.

The MMDA has removed several billboards along EDSA for allegedly violating the National Building Code and for being too “sexy.” The MMDA also filed a total of 18 cases against billboard operators in Makati and Quezon City courts for operating without the required permits from the MMDA, DPWH, and local government units.