He recalled that a number of individuals who defied the anti-littering and anti-garbage dumping act failed to secure police clearances due to the pending cases filed against them by the MMDA and the local government units (LGUs).

For their failure to obtain the required police and barangay clearances, the violators who ignored the notices were unable to leave the country for overseas work.

Others were eventually able to leave for abroad but only after paying hefty fines and suffering the inconvenience of undergoing the time-consuming process of securing their clearances.

MMDA Traffic Operations Center (TOC) Executive Director Angelito Vergel de Dios said the MMDA continues to perform its traffic management duties in Metro Manila despite opposition from some Metro Manila mayors.

Fernando insisted that the MMDA charter clearly specifies that the MMDA is the traffic authority in the metropolis and has the power to confiscate, suspend or revoke the driver’s licenses of motorists.

Fernando said the MMDA provides the public a more convenient way to settle their traffic fines through the Metro Traffic Ticketing (MTT) scheme.

Under the MTT, traffic violators may settle their dues in one of the 246 Metro Bank branches in the country.

An authorized representative may pay the traffic fines in the bank while the traffic violator has to personally redeem his driver’s license at the redemption centers and endure the long queues.

But by virtue of a court order, the MMDA ceased enforcing the MTT and reverted back to the more conventional way of apprehending traffic violators through the issuance of the traffic violation receipts.

Aside from facilitating the collection of traffic fines, Fernando said that MTT discouraged extortion, bribery and other corrupt acts because it limited the interaction of the traffic enforcers and the motorists.

But even with the MTT out, Fernando and the Metro Manila mayors remain at odds as the local officials insisted that the local traffic bureau has the power over the MMDA.

Fernando refused to budge, insisting that the traffic management authority of the MMDA is supreme in the metropolis with only the MMDA-deputized LGU traffic enforcers allowed to perform traffic duties.

He stressed that Congress gave the MMDA the power to confiscate, suspend and revoke driver’s licenses as part of its traffic regulating duties which cannot be said of the LGUs.

By virtue of the power of Congress, the single ticketing system implemented by the Land Transportation Office was transferred to the MMDA where some of the traffic regulations were adapted by the agency under a memorandum of agreement.