Prohibited Acts
- Illegal trading in petroleum and/or petroleum products.
- Hoarding of petroleum and/or petroleum products.
- Overpricing in the sale of petroleum and/or petroleum products.
- Misuse of petroleum allocations.
- Speed contests and rallies using vehicles powered by petroleum fuels (e.g., car rallies, drag racing).
- Sky-diving and water-skiing activities are prohibited.
Definition of Terms
- Illegal trading includes:
- Sale/distribution without government license or authority.
- Non-issuance of receipts by licensed traders.
- Misrepresentation of quality or quantity.
- Sales violating government regulations.
- Hoarding means:
- Undue accumulation beyond normal inventory.
- Unjustified refusal to sell or distribute.
- Unreasonable accumulation by non-traders.
- Overpricing means selling at prices above government authorized rates.
- Misuse of allocation involves:
- Sale, transfer, or diversion of mandated petroleum allocations against government intent.
Penalties
- Punishments:
- Fine: Minimum P2,000 to maximum P10,000.
- Imprisonment: From two months up to one year.
- Both fine and imprisonment at the court's discretion.
- Forfeiture of petroleum and/or products involved in illegal acts.
- If petroleum is delivered and paid, payment subject to forfeiture.
- Return of price if seller not delivered but fully paid.
- Cancellation of license if the offender is a trader.
- Cases must be resolved within 30 days after arraignment.
- Liability extends to officers (president, general manager, managing partner) if the offender is a juridical entity.
- Government officials/employees convicted will be perpetually disqualified from office.
Repealing Clause
- All inconsistent laws, decrees, orders, instructions, rules, and regulations are repealed or modified accordingly.
Effectivity
- The Act takes effect five days after publication in at least two newspapers of general circulation following approval.