AGUSTIN V. EDU - CASE DIGEST - CONSTITUTIONAL LAW

Kenzo
AGUSTIN V. EDU                     G.R. No. L-49112 February 2, 1979
FACTS:
Petitioner, Agustin assails the validity of the Letter of Instruction No. 229 which requires an early warning device to be carried by users of motor vehicles as being violative of the constitutional guarantee of due process and transgresses the fundamental principle of non-delegation of legislative power.
Herein respondent Romeo Edu in his capacity as Land Transportation Commisioner set forth the implementing rules and regulations of the said instruction.
Petitioner make known that he "is the owner of a Volkswagen Beetle Car, Model 13035, already properly equipped when it came out from the assembly lines with blinking lights fore and aft, which could very well serve as an early warning device in case of the emergencies mentioned in Letter of Instructions No. 229, as amended, as well as the implementing rules and regulations in Administrative Order No. 1 issued by the land transportation Commission,"
Furthermore, he contends that the law is "one-sided, onerous and patently illegal and immoral because [they] will make manufacturers and dealers instant millionaires at the expense of car owners who are compelled to buy a set of the so-called early warning device at the rate of P 56.00 to P72.00 per set." are unlawful and unconstitutional and contrary to the precepts of a compassionate New Society [as being] compulsory and confiscatory on the part of the motorists who could very well provide a practical alternative road safety device, or a better substitute to the specified set of Early Warning Device (EWD)."
This instruction, signed by President Marcos, aims to prevent accidents on streets and highways, including expressways or limited access roads caused by the presence of disabled, stalled or parked motor vehicles without appropriate early warning devices. The hazards posed by these disabled vehicles are recognized by international bodies concerned with traffic safety. The Philippines is a signatory of the 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals and the United Nations Organizations and the said Vienna Convention was ratified by the Philippine Government under PD 207.
ISSUE:
WON the LOI 229 is invalid and violated constitutional guarantees of due process.
HELD:
NO. The assailed Letter of Instruction was a valid exercise of police power and there was no unlawful delegation of legislative power on the part of the respondent. As identified, police power is a state authority to enact legislation that may interfere personal liberty or property in order to promote the general welfare. In this case, the particular exercise of police power was clearly intended to promote public safety.
It cannot be disputed that the Declaration of Principle found in the Constitution possesses relevance: The Philippines adopts the generally accepted principles of international law as part of the law of the nation. 
Thus, as impressed in the 1968 Vienna Convention it is not for this country to repudiate a commitment to which it had pledged its word. Our countrys word was resembled in our own act of legislative ratification of the said Hague and Vienna Conventions thru P.D. No. 207 .
The concept of Pacta sunt servanda stands in the way of such an attitude which is, moreoever, at war with the principle of international morality.
Petition dismissed.

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