Bus firms’ motorpools found with ‘extremely dangerous’ violations

Sen. Raffy Tulfo leads a surprise inspection of the motorpools of several bus companies in Metro Manila on Monday. — Photo from Sen. Raffy Tulfo’s office

MANILA, Philippines— From the lack of safety gear to filthy machines, “extremely dangerous” violations were observed during a random inspection of the motorpools of some of the bus companies in the metropolis.

The surprise visit on Monday was conducted by Sen. Raffy Tulfo as head of the Senate committee on public services, along with  transportation and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) personnel.

“Dito bumulaga sa akin ang samu’t-saring violations. Una, bilang vice chairman din ng Senate committee on labor and employment, nakita ko ang kaawa-awang kalagayan ng mga mekaniko,”  Tulfo said in a press release on Tuesday.

(Here, I witnessed a wide range of violations. First, as the vice chairman of the Senate committee on labor and employment, I saw the miserable condition of  the mechanics.)

According to him, all of the motorpools he visited lacked proper safety gear for their workers.

In one motorpool, for instance,  the machines and equipment used for bus maintenance were filthy and lacked safety covers, the senator said.

The electrical lines were also tangled and some were haphazardly tapped, he added.

“Ito ay lubhang mapanganib at takaw-aksidente para sa mga trabahador dahil maari silang masugatan, maputulan ng daliri, makuryente o mabulag,”  Tulfo said.

(This is extremely dangerous and accident-prone for the workers, as they could get injured, lose a finger, get electrocuted, or even go blind.)

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Tulfo said their inspection also also revealed  the following:

Workers lacked gloves, work boots, aprons, and safety goggles.
Most of the motorpool managers failed to present Tesda certifications for their mechanics.
Although some bus companies were partially compliant with Tesda requirements, their training procedures were outdated.
Other bus companies had no proper preventive maintenance or warranty booklets for each bus unit.
One motorpool had an underchassis or service pit with no safety markings, creating a risk for workers who might trip.  It also lacked proper ventilation, and the area was extremely hot, causing workers to inhale various chemical fumes, which is a long-term health hazard.

Tulfo gave all motorpool managers a deadline to comply and submit the maintenance and compliance records of each bus unit to the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, Land Transportation Office, and Tesda, which they will forward to his office.