MANILA, Philippines – If proven that the Light Rail Transit (LRT 1 and 2) and Metro Rail Transit 3 (MRT) fare hike was not justified, then government officials defending it should step down from their posts, Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano said on Wednesday.
Cayetano specifically questioned the government’s claim that it needs P12 billion to subsidize the MRT 3 operations when it had never made any funding request from Congress beyond P7 billion.
“So how come sinasabi nila ngayon P10 billion to P12 billion ang cost, saan nanggaling yung math na yun? And if that’s a lie, dapat mag-resign na sila kasi nagsisinungaling sila sa mamamayan,” he said during a press conference.
(So how come they are saying now that the cost is P10 billion to P12 billion? Where did that math come from? And if that’s a lie, they should resign because they are fooling the people.)
Asked who should resign, the senator pointed to officials of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) and other officials defending the fare increase.
“Because I believe that the President has been misled here,” he said.
Cayetano also called on the Senate to look into the matter and summon the officials of the DOTC, Department of Finance, MRT and LRT to explain the fare increase.
“Ang panawagan ko ay magkaroon agad ng hearing ang Senado para po ang DOF at DOTC at mga opisyales ng LRT, MRT ay makaharap natin, mailabas nila ang mga libro at mga financial statements dahil ako naniniwala na pag napatunayan nila na kailangan talaga, di ang pag-uusapan na lang natin ay gaano kataas at kung paanong hindi makakaapekto sa ating mga commuters…” he said.
(I call on the Senate to immediately conduct a hearing so that the DOF and DOTC and officials of LRT,MRT can face us, open their books and financial statements because I think if they can prove (that the increase was justified), then we’ll only discuss the rate and how it will not affect our commuters.)
“Pero pag napatunayan na hindi naman pala kelangan ng increase o kaya naman pala ng gobyerno na i-subsidize, I think they will have no choice but sundin yung mga boss.”
(But if we can prove that there was no need for the increase or the government can subsidize it, I think they will have no choice but to follow the people.)
But Cayetano was confident that the numbers would show that the government’s arguments were “empty” and that the fare hike was not “justified.”
“Dapat i-stop talaga o mag-issue ang Supreme Court ng TRO…,” the senator added.
Originally posted: 3:26 PM | Wednesday, January 7th, 2015
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