MRT Train. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/RAFFY LERMA
MANILA, Philippines – Can you imagine an elevated rail being hit by floods?
Senators raised this question on Tuesday during the hearing of the Senate committee on finance on the proposed budget of the Department of Transportation and Communications next year.
“That’s unimaginable but it happened in MRT (Metro Rail Transit) 3,” said Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero, chairman of the committee.
Senator Nancy Binay, an opposition member, also pointed out a photo posted on Internet last week, showing waters dripping inside an MRT coach.
“May tulo? Yung train?” Escudero asked
But MRT officer in charge, Renato San Jose, denied that its trains were hit by floods.
“Wala pong incident ng flooding inside the train…” San Jose said, responding to queries of the two senators.
“May nag-post na, na may tulo sa loob ng train,” Binay insisted.
“Yun po yung sa aircon. Nagkaroon po talaga ng problema yung aircon so nagkaroon ng pagtulo dun sa loob kaya po binaha yung train,” San Jose answered.
“Hindi dahil malakas ang ulan? It was more of the aircon?” Binay asked again to which San Jose answered yes.
Before this, Escudero grilled the transportation officials present during the hearing led by Secretary Joseph Abaya over the delay of the bidding process for a new contract that would replace the MRT 3’s current maintenance provider, Autre Porte Technique Global Inc. (APT Global).
Abaya said the contract with the APT Global expired last September 4 but they only published the bidding for the new contract the day before.
“Why ? If the contract will expire September 4, why will you publish the bidding for that contract on September 3?” Escudero asked.
“Well admittedly your honor we came in late,” Abaya said, explaining that the delay was due to some debates whether or not to grant a year or longer contract to the new maintenance provider.
Despite the delay, Abaya said the contract could still be awarded to the winning bidder next month.
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