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Public Interest High On Agenda In Emergency Powers — Poe
Public interest should be upheld and recognized to push plans to resolve the traffic crisis in the metropolis, Senator Grace Poe said today, as lack of public consultations with stakeholders would spell failure of state projects.
“If the emergency powers are being sought in the name of the people, then it is proper that we ask the people what changes they want to see. Most often, transport plans fail, not because they are not good enough, but because they suffer from the fatal handicap of not consulting people on the ground,” Poe, who chairs the Senate committee on public services, said during the resumption of the public hearing on the emergency powers sought by the President to solve traffic.
For one, Poe referred to the interim Southwest Integrated Provincial Terminal at the shuttered Uniwide Mall in Parañaque City, saying that although millions of public money have been spent, conditions of its facilities were decrepit and the terminal itself was “a living hell for commuters.”
“Hindi maayos ang pagkakagawa, at ngayon, napabayaan na ng gobyerno. Sa aking pagtingin, ang dumi-dumi ng paligid, napakadilim, halos walang madaanan ang iba nating kababayan dahil sa mga nakabalandra doon sa ibang walkways sa baba. Gumagawa sila ng mga sarili nilang mga makeshift na hagdan para mas may madaling access. Ang cross walk sa mga major intersections, hindi po nakamarka,” said Poe during the hearing.
According to Poe, there is not enough room for the buses to maneuver and commuters complain that it takes a long time for the buses to leave.
“Nakakaawa kung araw-araw dito kayo dapat mag-abang ng bus para pumasok sa trabaho at ‘yan din ang dadatnan mo (pauwi). Napakadumi, ang hirap daanan ng lugar, kailangan nakabota ka pa minsan sa sobrang putik. Madilim. Nalaman ko may banyo, tatlong stalls, kaya lang 150 meters ka pa sa banyo, naamoy mo na. May waiting area na parang sa airport terminal, maganda naman, pero nakakandado dahil sira ang aircon. Ito po ang kauna-unahahan nating bus terminal sa Metro Manila. ‘Yan ang sitwasyon sa ating bansa na ang ekonomiya ay lumalago na. Kaya talagang hindi ko maintidihan bakit napabayaan ng ganito ang terminal na ito,” she narrated.
Poe has invited stakeholders to the hearing–urban planning experts, public utility vehicle operators, trucking organizations and commuter groups–to hear their proposals.
The senator said government must be careful in planning and should not waste funds in trying to find solutions to current problems absent any consultation.
Poe asked the Department of Transportation to submit to the committee before the next hearing a list of specific projects that the agency needs to accomplish in solving traffic, including timelines of start and completion of the project, possible cost, modes of procurement and a “wishlist” of emergency powers needed to complete a project.
