Alvarez: Start building common station, with or without TRO

House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez. CDN FILE PHOTO/Junjie Mendoza

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez on Wednesday said work should finally begin on the planned common station linking three lines of the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) and Light Rail Transit (LRT) systems, “with or without a TRO (temporary restraining order).”

Addressing stakeholders at a House inquiry, Alvarez said too many hearings had been devoted to the contentious project, which had undergone several iterations due to the clashing interests of two mall developers, before an agreement was finally signed on Jan. 18.

“We’ve taken too much time on this. There have been many hearings, even in the 14th Congress. It’s high time that the government finally pushed through with this,” the Speaker said during the hearing of the transportation committee.

“It’s high time you started building, with or without a TRO,” he said, referring to the Supreme Court issuances blocking the change in the location of the station due to a disagreement between two mall developers. “Even if somebody files (a case for) contempt against you, just let them. Government projects should not be impeded [by the courts].”

The court order stemmed from a 2014 decision of the transportation department, then headed by Joseph Abaya, to move the station’s location from the SM City North Edsa Annex to an area near Trinoma mall.

The station was originally meant to be located near the SM property, based on an agreement SM Prime had with the Light Rail Transit Authority in 2009 during Arroyo administration. When this was not followed, SM Prime sued the department in 2014 for breach of contract.

Also affected were Light Rail Manila Corp., a venture between Ayala Corp. and the Manuel V. Pangilinan group that operates LRT-1, as well as San Miguel Corp., which is building the MRT-7.

The companies finally came to an agreement with the Department of Transportation on Jan. 18 to build the facility at the Edsa-North Avenue intersection.