Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
THE AQUINO administration on Friday parried accusations of its “ineptness,” saying it remained dedicated to addressing the problems hounding the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) Line 3 whose 12 trains are used by an average of half a million commuters each day.
In a statement to the Inquirer, spokesperson Herminio Coloma Jr. said that “government continues to work on the improvement of the MRT 3 and mass transport services.”
In addition, he pointed out that under the Aquino administration, the Office of the Ombudsman had also “acted on allegations of graft and impropriety and appropriate cases had been filed against those accountable.”
Business consultant Peter Wallace criticized the administration’s “inept” management of the country’s mass transport systems as evidenced by, among others, frequent breakdowns of the MRT system.
The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) said commuters “will soon experience significantly improved service levels” after it awarded the long-term maintenance contract to a joint venture of Busan Transportation Corporation, Edison Development & Construction, Tramat Mercantile Inc., TMICorp Inc., and Castan Corporation.
“Beginning Jan. 5 next year, the winning concessionaire will fulfill the general maintenance requirements for three years,” DOTC said in a statement. “The long contract period will allow the new service provider to procure the necessary spare parts needed to increase the number of operating trains, especially during peak hours.”
It added that the P3.81-billion contract also covers the general overhaul of the trains and the total replacement of the signaling system.
“Previous attempts to bid out the long-term maintenance contract—
once in September 2014 and again in January 2015—resulted in failure due to the nonparticipation of bidders,” DOTC said.
The Department of Justice and the National Economic Development Authority have also approved the said mode of procurement.