Only 2 cockpits allowed: City dad to review ordinance

CEBU, Philippines - City Councilor Sisinio Andales said he will review the existing city ordinance on the operation of cockpits owing to a Supreme Court ruling that allows only one additional cockpit in cities or municipalities with or more than 100,000.

The Supreme Court also says any ordinances enacted by the municipal or city councils must not contravene the Constitution or any statute of the land.

“While the Sangunian retains the power to authorize and license the establishment, operation, and maintenance of cockpits, its discretion is limited in that it cannot authorize more than one cockpit per city or municipality, unless such cities or municipalities have a population of over 100,000 in which case two cockpits maybe established,” the Supreme Court said in a 2005 ruling.

Andales, a lawyer and vice chairman of the Council’s committee on laws, said rulings of the Supreme Court should be strictly followed because they are considered part of the law of the land.

Andales said it is also important to review the ordinance on cockpit operation, considering that the previous Council even proposed to increase the number of cockpits here from four to six.

Some legislators argue that the City Council is empowered by the Local Government Code to approve or grand franchise to cockpits in their respective localities. The Supreme Court, however, said this power to issue permits has its limits.

“If we construe section 447 (a) as vesting an unlimited discretion to the Sangunian to controls all aspects of cockpits and cockfighting in their respective jurisdiction, this could lead to the prospect of daily cockfights in municipalities, a certain distraction in the daily routine of life in a municipality,” the high tribunal said.

In the 2005 ruling, the Supreme Court said “the resolution of the present petition effectively settles the question of how many cockpits may be allowed to operate in a city or municipality.”

The 2005 ruling was issued in connection with the case involving a cockpit operator and former officials of the northern town of Daanbantayan.

The case stemmed from an ordinance that the Daanbantayan Council enacted, which allowed three cockpits to operate in the town. The ordinance was enacted despite the National Cockfighting law, which allows only two cockpits for cities or municipalities with a population of more than 100,000.

The ordinance in Cebu City allows four cockpits to operate here mainly because of the argument that the city has two districts, thus, each district is entitled to two cockpits.

Former city councilor Sylvan Jakosalem had proposed to increase the number of cockpits in the city from four to six, although it was not acted upon by the City Council until the term of the previous councilors ended.

Even legal officers of the Department of Interior and Local Government also described the move of Cebu City to increase the cockpits because it is contrary to the existing law, under Presidential Decree 449. 

“Limitation on the number of cockpits in a given municipality is a reasonably necessary means for the accomplishment of the purpose of controlling cockfighting, for clearly more cockpits equals more cockfights,” the Supreme Court says.     (FREEMANNEWS)