Grace Poe to transport execs: Get your act together

Sen. Grace Poe today called on Transportation officials and MRT owners to properly address mass rail transit woes by getting their act together amid continued public suffering in the wake of a series of MRT glitches.

"Amid this labyrinth of ownership, it all boils down to the safety of our riding public. Hindi matutumbasan ng kahit anupaman ang buhay ng ating mga mananakay," Poe said.

Poe, chairperson of the Senate sub-committee on transportation, cited a report that a train was stalled at the southbound lane of EDSA near Camp Aguinaldo for about 10 to 15 minutes on Wednesday morning, but MRT officials initially said this was not true. During the hearing, MRT officer-in-charge Renato San Jose said that the interruption lasted only six minutes.

"Dapat ipadama natin sa kanila ang ating malasakit para maibsan ang paghihirap at pagdurusang kanilang dinaranas sa kanilang paglalakbay," Poe stressed, adding that proper reporting of technical glitches and malfunctions should be put in place.

During the Senate hearing, the senator asked Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya to submit the general plan of the department on the said expansion.

At the same time, Poe asked the DOTC to submit up-to-date report on glitches and service interruptions, including elevator and escalator efficiency. She also asked for a matrix of the scope of work of previous maintenance provider Sumitomo Corp. and current maintenance provider joint venture Global-APT Inc.

Poe also requested the MRT Corp. to submit a technical audit of the MRT system.

The senator underscored that while the government is awaiting the arrival of new MRT coaches, it must ensure utmost safety of the commuters.

Towards the end of the hearing, Poe called on DOTC and MRTC officials to be "more in touch with each other and think of the welfare and safety of the commuters."