MANILA, Philippines – Vice President Leni Robredo has been giving suggestions that may solve the country’s problems — including the traffic situation — her spokesperson told presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo on Monday.
This was the response of lawyer Barry Gutierrez after his counterpart in Malacañang said that members of the opposition like Robredo should provide proposals instead of merely criticizing the government.
“VP Leni is always ready to help the government, she has been giving out suggestions even before, not only on issues surrounding traffic flow but also about other problems,” Gutierrez said in a statement.
“The question is, after three years in power, why is this government only seeking solutions now, even if it has promised long ago to ease heavy traffic? It seems that the solutions to heavy traffic flow also encountered heavy traffic,” he asked.
Robredo, seen by many as the figurehead of the opposition as she chairs the Liberal Party, has openly spoken about problems plaguing the government, including traffic and transportation — which she said during the 2016 campaign period as her top priority.
Formerly a representative from Camarines Sur, Robredo said she feels the ill-effects of heavy traffic whenever she commutes from Manila to her hometown in Naga City. This prompted her to suggest fixing railroads leading to provinces and the airports in rural areas.
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Panelo was previously reacting to Robredo’s statements that the government cannot solve the transport crisis if it does not admit it. It can be remembered that Panelo dismissed claims of a mass transport crisis in Metro Manila, which was made by Bagong Alyansang Makabayan Secretary-General Renato Reyes.
The presidential spokesperson said that there is no crisis because commuters can still reach their destinations, leading youth militants to dare Panelo and other officials including President Rodrigo Duterte himself, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade and Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) spokesperson Celine Pialago to commute.
Panelo’s commute last Friday took four hours — even as he left Marikina by 5:15 a.m.
Still, Gutierrez thanked Panelo for accepting that there is a traffic crisis — not a transport crisis as originally said by Reyes.
“We thank Secretary Panelo for admitting that there is a traffic crisis that needs to be solved,” Gutierrez noted. /jpv
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