MMDA employees cause traffic with protest on EDSA office

MANILA, Philippines – Employees of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) staged a protest Monday afternoon in Makati City over unpaid benefits, causing traffic in the area, a MMDA Metrobase officer said.

The officer, who introduced himself as Bravo 15, said some 30 protesters went to the MMDA’s main office along EDSA corner Orense Street in Guadalupe, Makati City about noontime to protest about a “sign-in bonus for employees.”

He said protesters occupied four lanes of the road, but later agreed to move as traffic built up in the area.

Courage, the government’s employee organization, claimed that there were 600 protesters to demand payment for unpaid benefits in the Collective Negotiation Agreement (CNA). It did not say whether this referred to the bonus.

The Kapisanan para sa Kagalingan ng mga Kawani of the MMDA also claimed that the agency has P220 million in savings for 2011 but refused to release the funds.