Senators: DOTr chief can be concurrent MMDA chair, traffic czar

Photos from Sen. Poe’s office

Senators broached the idea on Wednesday of having Trade Secretary Arthur Tugade as concurrent chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and as traffic czar.

This came up during the hearing of the Senate committee on public services chaired by Senator Grace Poe on several bills, granting President Rodrigo Duterte emergency powers to address the traffic woes in the country.

READ: Tugade begs for emergency powers: It’s not absolute, perpetual

“Why doesn’t the Secretary become the MMDA chairman? Both in a concurrent capacity so you would have control of the emergency (powers),” Senate President Pro Tempore Franklin Drilon said.

“That’s also one of the conditions that we’d want to have—one point person who’s really in charge in implementing the emergency powers,” Poe seconded.

“That’s why the Transportation Secretary can currently be the MMDA chair,” Drilon again said.

While the proposed legislations mentioned about the appointment of a traffic czar, Senator Leila de Lima noted that the emergency powers being sought are supposed to be for the President.

READ: Senate tackles Duterte ‘emergency powers’

“So I doubt if we can further grant emergency powers to a particular official even if that particular official is subordinate or an alter-ego of the President so that’s one” said De Lima, who was former Justice Secretary before she was elected senator last May.

“Number two, there would be a problem there, because all of the departments, the line agencies, you do have your own statutory mandates and authorities. A traffic czar, a singular official, cannot just be vested with broad powers to be able to override the functions of these line agencies,” she said.

De Lima pointed out, however, that she had no problem with having a “single authority” as proposed earlier in the hearing to deal with the traffic mess.

“But with respect to single official, is it something that sits well with the good Secretary?” she asked.

“Maybe that’s also worth looking into Madam Secretary but I hope my comment does not necessarily mean in anyway or two that I’m volunteering and I’m accepting,” said Tugade.

“Pwede ho yun, mas maganda ho yung isa lang talaga ang kumumpas e. Pwede ho isang grupo pero isa lang ang responsible na kumukumpas (That could be implemented, it’s better if there is a single official with sole authority. It could be a a group but only a single official is responsible),” he added.

“Na answerable sa Pangulo (And he would be answerable to the President)?” Poe followed up without an answer from the transportation chief.

But on the sidelines of the hearing, Poe explained that the emergency powers can be delegated by the President.

“The emergency power is for the President to be able to do what he needs to do. Siyempre kahit naman anong kapangyarihan ng Pangulo, mayroon pa rin siyang dinedelegate. So kung binigyan natin ng emergency powers ang President, as the representative of the President, ay maaari niyang i-execute iyan for him,” she said, referring to Tugade. RAM