A party-list lawmaker on Thursday hit the series of off-loading incidents involving the MRT3.
Anakpawis party-list Rep. Ariel Casilao said the three consecutive incidents of passenger off-loading was a grave sign and that the government should immediately do something and not just wait for another serious accident occur to MRT commuters.
Last Nov. 1, there was a reported passenger off-loading due to technical problem and today, there have been three consecutive passengers off-loading due to a door, brake and atp failure.
Casilao, a member of the Makabayan Bloc, said the technical failures are a part of the bigger problem of the MRT operation and its maintenance.
Despite the Department of Transportation’s filing of complaints against former DoTC officials to the Office of the Ombudsman, Casilao said the department has yet to cancel the contract of Busan Universal Railway Inc. to give way for other providers’ that will handle MRT3’s maintenance.
“The DoTR had already issued a notice of termination to BURI but how come it is still handling the maintenance of MRT3?,” Casilao asked.
Casilao also said the DoTR should be ashamed not only to MRT commuters but also to tax payers as it cannot do its work properly. Millions if not hundreds of million pesos of government resources are spent for the maintenance of MRT 3 but in return, it gives a horrific service.
“They should learn from the 2014 MRT3 accident when one of its train off-shoot from the rail that caused a number of serious injuries in Pasay-Edsa station. The Duterte gov’t and the MRT management should be accountable if that kind of accident happens again”, Casilao said.