Showing posts with label fare hike. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fare hike. Show all posts
The latest news is that when there are no bidders for MRT3 maintenance provider, the DOTC will accept direct negotiation with other company. This is another issue for Jun Abaya if his critics will pursue such decision. Likewise, I think, the DOTC Secretary is always ready to answer their doubts.
Majority of the people doubting this fare increases would be siphoned into a huge pork barrel fund to finance public works projects through such schemes as the Disbursement Acceleration Program rather than to improve in the metro rail system to make it more efficient and safer for commuters to travel between their homes and jobs?
Of all the immediate concern for MRT3 commuters is safe travel on the trains from point and point B and over the past few months, the system has drawn criticism for recurrent breakdowns due to mechanical glitches. Last August MRT-3 was forced to suspend operations due to mechanical and communication failures. The 15-year-old MRT has been plagued by technical problems and overcrowding.
The worst of these train service disruptions, due to maintenance shortfalls, took place, with the derailment of a southbound train that sent almost 40 people to hospital for injuries. Passenger safety has come off as the more critical issue plaguing the elevated railways system than the source of subsidies for the entire system. It involves life and death issues over whether the trains become the casket for some.
The Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya has more reasons why he’s still implementing the fare increase even though more and more groups and lawmakers filed petitions to stop the increase. The Supreme Court decided that TRO cannot be given because of the stature of DOTC stand to increase the same.
Various sectors intend to ask the Office of the President to review and suspend the fare increase implemented by Metro Rail Transit (MRT) and Light Rail Transit (LRT) on orders of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC). Amid the outrage over the MRT-LRT fare increases, different sectors will jointly file a letter-petition before the Office of the President to ask for a review and suspension of the fare hike adjustment.
The petitioners, led by Akbayan Representatives Walden Bello and Barry Gutierrez and former senior government official Raffy Alunan, will ask President Benigno Aquino III "to exercise its 'power of control' over all executive departments, bureaus and offices by revoking" DOTC Order No. 2014-14 or the Implementation of the Uniform Distance-based Fare Scheme for three train lines.
The future of MRT-LRT train system could be improved and developed by our leaders with honest intention to serve the people. Election 2016 will be another leader chosen to manage and govern the Philippines. As such the issue still lingers which need the focus for solutions?
The Senate handled the MRT3 glitches over the DOTC Secretary Emilio Abaya and Bob Sobrepena of MRT Holdings resulted to more meetings and intensifying subjects being discussed in the open.
For the past months, before the signing of 2015 budget, Secretary Emilio Abaya was very much alive with his planned strategies on how to tackle MRT3 problems and continued to move forward with his leadership for the good of the commuters. While at the same time, never had a wink of giving MRT Holdings its proposition for business unification. Even the Senate cannot twisted his firmed ways to solve this gigantic problem of the MRT3 drama that buyout was the only option.
Then, Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya failed to attend the hearing on the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) and the Light Rail Transit (LRT) fare hike. Truthfully, he’s busy preparing for the Pope’s visit to the Philippines and needs to prioritize things in order.
But militant group leaders like BAYAN MUNA Representative Neri Colmenares, BUHAY Representative Lito Atienza, and AKO BICOL Representative Rodel Batocabe voiced-out their negative note because of his absence.
Even Senators Grace Poe and Francis Escudero vowed to confront Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio A. Abaya and Budget Secretary Florencio Abad over the “treacherous’’ increase of mass transit fare.
Both accused the Department of Transportation and Communication of putting one over the public by enforcing the fare increase of the Metro Rail Transit and Light Rail Transit right during the holidays.
The increase, they argued, was ill-timed because Congress approved allocations for MRT and LRT in the P2.606-trillion 2015 national budget, and that MRT has not fixed its glitches.
Other Filipinos think negatively that Secretary Abaya, as the ruling Liberal Party’s acting President has made it a source of dirty money for election 2016. They concluded that such billion-peso corruption been prevented, there would be no need for the fare hike. What do you think?
Moreover, Senator Grace Poe approved for the need to raise the fare hike, but the timing is not. Poe added that MRT3 has poor services, and has yet to fix its glitches, among many others, and fuel prices have just gone down. She also wondered why the DOTC did not inform lawmakers about the fare increase when it asked for subsidy in the supplemental budget.
The Senate must wait after the Papal visit to call a meeting with DOTC Secretary Emilio Abaya and confront him with their published remarks. If they’re just riding to upkeep their images, then, they’re just playing poker instead. Their true intent must be measured by their ability to comprehend the political development within the arena. Likewise, our country needs honest leaders to put forward the development and living condition of all Filipinos.
It’s a must for, political leaders, militant groups, media people and even us to contemplate peace in solving and resolving such case like this. Never judge a person until he’s proven guilty. Maintain harmony within ourselves and trusts our present leaders to do their responsibilities to our country and its people.
The Department of Transportation and Communication Secretary Emilio Abaya has ample guts to proceed with his planned strategies to complete the buyout as per his latest announcement of Department Order for train mass transportation in Metro Manila. His confidence coupled by the Pnoy Administration support made him the focus of so many disappointments coming from different sectors of the society.
The Pnoy Administration’s truly involved and believed the same way as he did. Moreover, he has the support for this MRT3 endeavor all along.
Even in the onset of the MRT3 circus from the past, he maintained his structured goals to claim the ownership of the MRT3-EDSA train system for a complete buyout. The MRT Holdings open suggestions and Senate findings cannot stop him to continue the buyout.
Moreover, the Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya has the option to select better understanding and teamwork with MRT Holdings while maintaining the business interest of the co-owner. But, he’s focused in completing the MRT3 buyout through the release of 2015 budget. “The government buyout of MRT-3, the rail line along EDSA, is still the most advantageous arrangement for riders and taxpayers. Some people are out to derail this plan because they want to continue making money. The allocation of more than P6 billion for the purchase of the remaining bonds of MRT Corp. (MRTC) could be the key to such an option. The P6 billion is part of the P54 billion the House of Representatives has included in the P2.606-trillion 2015 national budget for the state takeover-buyout of MRT-3 next year. Senators deleted the bulk of the P54- billion appropriations. They retained a small part, including P6 billion intended for buying the remaining 15-16 percent of MRTC bonds floated by private investors who built the EDSA rail line system. Two state banks – Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) and Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) – now hold more than 80 percent of such bonds. The two banks control MRTC, which owns MRT-3.
If the government is able to buy all of MRTC bonds, it should own the EDSA rail line and rehabilitate it without interference from the remaining private investors. The private investors MRT Holdings claim that the government, by holding MRTC bonds, owns only economic interests, including revenues, while they, the investors, have ownership rights over the system that produce such revenues.
Economic rights and owner- ship rights are one and the same thing, because when the contract between the government and private investors end in 2015, both of these rights and interests will accrue to the state. By then, the state will own the system. The private investors would have no stake at all in MRT-3 after the expiration of the contract.
The failure to match fare adjustments with increasing operating costs caused by inflation have resulted in practically break-even finances for all three lines. In turn, this crippled their ability to invest in large-scale improvements for their facilities, since revenues have only been enough for day-to-day operational requirements. Since government subsidizes around 60 percent of the cost for each LRT-1 and LRT-2 passenger and around 75 percent of each MRT-3 passenger, an estimated P2 billion would be freed up for development projects and relief operations in other parts of the country.
It’s really very hard to impose such fare hike when MRT3 had the negative image for train commuters and the Filipinos alike. Imagine, series of breakdowns were experienced in the past and the security dangled like the Spanish chorizo in the supermarket? There’s no such thing to implement when the MRT3 operations, management and services are in the verge of collapse.
But, DOTC Jun Abaya has been armored to defend what’s good for the commuters without the business interest of some but the economic interest of the Philippines.
