'Give MMDA

a chance'
By Elmer il. lUanuel and lftistina tllaralit

*tr"g:" rr,ffic .woes that continues

I
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review
Wednesday, 14 August
2019
Daily Tribune
gf *r.e mandate of ths lMffifiiurl
Development uunla
Authority Olnndi)."*^'

lurn to page A6

Frorn Fge I ruling which invai

During the,senate inquiry yesterday by
President Gloria Ma
the Public Services Committee, Minority
similar directive to
Leader Franklin Drilon agreed to the
,ter als along EDSA
.,trhe Philippine c
MIIIDAs difficulty in managing EDSA haffit
cohgestion costs th
ryith ailthe localgovernment units invoking billion daily, a 20LT
their power over their jurisdiction.
Japan International Co
'We are not depriving local government
showed. firis could rise
units of any power but just on that
particular issue, the management of 2035 if no intervention
EDSA This is a thoroughfare that is so The government is
critical to our economy. Maybe we shsuld build transportation s

re'iew the power of MMDA', said Drilon, com'muting in the capit

noting that the cities of Caloocan, Quezon, the roads pf cars.
Mardaluyong, Pasay, and Makati havetheir Malacaflang also wa
jurisdictions over the stre-tch of EDSA give the MMDA a char
:

The senator moved to review the measures that would aI

mandate of the MMDA given the still situation in EDSA.
worsening traffic situation in that
The governmerft is n
,

23.&kilometer stretch. ::

build transportatior
We are not depriving loeal m*e commuting in
gwernment units of any power QUEZoN City Councitor winnie casteto (left) tetds iha'li;ffiffiil easier and free the :

bgt just on that particular issue, ANALY LABOR

the management of EDSA.
*It's about time that we
review
the power of MMDA given the chaotic
situation because it has been brought
out that the reason for the i4iunction is
that the MMDA admitted that they have
no power and it belongs to the LGU,'
Drilon said.
Piovincial bus ban
He also referred to the order issued
by a Quezon City court against the
provincial bus ban on EDSA and stressed
that it will be an opportunlty for them
to review the particular aspect because
gthe-rwise the "implementor is hamstrung
by the lack of authority.,
Senate Public Services Committee
chairman Sen. Grace poe, on the other
hand, concurred with Drilon and noted
Presidential spokes
that since they e>rpanded the definition of The senator added that she will Panelo issued the call a
Metro Manila to Mega Manila to include conduct another hearing uonly to listen is not just the commute
Rtzal, Cavite, as well as Laguna, uthat to his (Lim's) side."
with a great deal of inr
perhaps we should review the mandate uTo
those who don't attend, don't to the traf{ic congestior
of MMDA.' think that your day here will,not come According to him
Poe also lambasted MMDA chairman uexperiment" of
because this is an issue of accountability. full
Danilo Lim for his absence in the Senate Everyone should have a chance to have enforcing the yellow
inquiry. their side heard,' Poe said. throughout the S4kilor
.Lim, according to MMDA general
the highway is na hit or
manager Jojo Garcia, attended a Failed experirnent
"You know, it can't b
memorandum of agreement (MoA) The inquiry stemmed from the MMDA is not affected when ;
signing that could not be postponed
push to implement a dry run of the Let's $ve them a chancr
- which did not sit well with the poe. provincial bus ban, even after a Quezon to them during the Sen
She stressed that the MOA signing was City court barred the implementation of
have a lot of plans,o Pal
merely "ceremonial.n' the policy.
"Let MMDA do its jo
"Couldnlt they have signed that in Several groups claimed that the do anything, then let'
five minutes and come.here after?" poe MMDA does not have the authoriff to solution. Itts useless d
asked Garcia. oOf course, what you'll say ban provincial buses along EDSA as the things, because they
will be different. Because you are not the agency does not have legislative nor recommendations and u
leader, will you be able to implement that police powers. in place arfl yet here
without approval'from him., They bited a 200T Supreme Court criticizing them,n' stated

\ freoxlf r.AWa

ruling which invalidated former
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's
.:.,....,. sirnila,r directive to close down bus
[6 ah along EDSA in 2oo'. ,
,,',::,,:,,:::
,.?he Philippine capital's traffic
congestion costs the country P3.5
billion daily, a 2017 data from the
I. Jappn International Cooperation Agency
showed. This could rise to P5.4 billion by
2035 if no iirterventions are made.
The government is now rushing to
build transportation systems to make
com,muting in the capital easier and free
the roads of cars.
Malacafiang also wants the public to
$ve the IlltmA a ehbnesto implement
measures that would alleviate the tra^ffic
situation in EDSA
fire governnned is now rushing to
build transportation systems to
e commuting in the eapital
easier and free the roads of ca,rs.
R
Presidential spokesperson Salvador
I Panelo issued the call as he noted that it
n is ngt just the commuters who are faced
with a great deal of inconvenience due
t to the traffic congestion.
e According to him, the MMD^{s
{. "experimentn of fully and strictly
e enforcing the yellow lane fsr buses
throughout the S4kilometer stretch of
the higlrway is ua hit or miss.n
"You know, it can't be that the public
A. is not affected when you experiment.
e Let's give them a chance. I was listening
n to them during the Senate hearingthey
rf have a lot of plans,n Panelo said.
"Let MMDA do its job. If it does not
e do anything, then let's find another
o solution. It's useless discussing these
.e things, because they already have
)r recommendations and they are not even
in place arfl yet here we are, already
criticizing them,' stated the official.
uWait
it out first, be patient. All of us
are affected,' he added.
firis is a thoroughfare that is so
critical to our economy. Maybe
we should review the power of
MMDA.
Meanwhile, Quezon City 3rd District
Rep. Allan Benedict Reyes on Tuesda;
disclosed that a Magna Carta for
commuters that is pending in botl
chambers of Congress seeks greater
mobility.to people by gtving them mort
transportation options and making urbar
centers more walkable.
In a television interview, Reyes sait
that commuters - not private cars - wil
be'"first in line" and will be given morr
'options
through larger sidewalks that car
also accommodate bicycles and scooters
'Walkable EDSIf
*Imagine a walkable EDSA. Let's sa;
you want to go from Cubao to Ortigas
That's just a qhort walk. But if we providr
a nice walkable, treelined probably o
elevated walk'way why won't you do tha
just like in Hong Kong,n said Reyes. uThi
bill would help make you first in linr
not private cars but you'd be given morr
priorities, given more access to your choice
of getting from one point to another.n
The lawmaker authored House Bil
3125 or An Act Creating a Magna Cartr
of Commuters' while Sen. Franci
Pangilinan filed the couhterBart rr€&Sllt,
in the Senate.
uWhat agencies are doing right nol
is decongest our streets, our m4io
thorougMares. But with this House Bil
we want to bring in mobility to ou
.commuters,' Reyes said, adding that
more commuter-friendly metropolis wt
$ve people easier access to food, water
healthcare, education, and jobs.