Contingency plans are in place for the three-day transport strike which will start on July 24, the day of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s second State of the Nation Address (SONA), said the Inter-Agency Task Force Monitoring Team (IATF-MT).
Senior Deputy Executive Secretary Hubert Guevarra, MMDA Acting Chairman Atty. Don Artes, and MMDA General Manager Usec. Procopio Lipana presided over an inter-agency meeting with various government agencies and Metro Manila traffic bureau heads to discuss the plans to ensure that the commuting public will not be inconvenienced by the transport strike and provide traffic and security management since it will coincide with the SONA.
Guevarra lauded the efforts of the inter-agency members for sitting down together and discussing the measures to address issues that might be encountered, including the dispatching of rescue vehicles to ferry passengers that might be affected and monitoring of weather conditions on the day of the President’s SONA.
“We request the LGUs to cooperate with the single dispatching system of the rescue assets at the MMDA Command Center on the day itself. During the last transport strike, we were able to monitor through the CCTV (closed circuit television) cameras the convergence of rallyists, and can easily call the PNP (Philippine National Police) to maintain peace and order,” he said during the meeting held at the MMDA Head Office in Pasig City.
“The team is more than prepared because of the best practices and lessons learned from the previous transport strike held in March.”
Artes said the team is also more than prepared because of the best practices and lessons learned from the previous transport strike held in March.
“We were able to address the needs of the riding public before because of the united efforts of the government with agencies and 17 Metro Manila local government units,” he stressed.
Artes said inter-agency monitoring of the situation as well as maintaining order on affected routes will be at the newly inaugurated MMDA Communications and Command Center (MMDA CCC) at the MMDA Head Office in Pasig City.
“A central dispatch of rescue units shall be observed in getting the stranded passengers so that other transport groups and drivers who will not join the transport strike can continue their usual services and gain income.”
Meanwhile, Lipana pointed out that a central dispatch of rescue units shall be observed in getting the stranded passengers so that other transport groups and drivers who will not join the transport strike can continue their usual services and gain income.
“Inter-agencies are prepared to take necessary measures on the affected routes; monitoring and coordination with the LGUs are necessary. Each national and local agency are ready to provide rescue units or vehicles to assist the riding public in case possible passengers build up,” he explained.
An inventory of assets was also prepared, which will be the basis for decision-making for quick dispatching of rescue vehicles in coordination with the situation on the ground. The MMDA is ready to dispatch rescue vehicles when needed.
Atty. Zona Russet Tamayo, regional director of the LTFRB Regional Franchising and Regulatory Office for the National Capital Region, will also be in coordination with the transport groups that will not join the strike.
The Philippine National Police-National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) will deploy the PNP Reaction Team, which will be prepositioned in strategic areas to respond where there are incidents of harassment. Any untoward incident must be reported to the Command Center.
Representatives from NCRPO, the Philippine Coast Guard, the Office of Civil Defense, the Inter-Agency Council for Traffic, the Joint Task Force-National Capital Region (JTF-NCR), and other concerned agencies attended the inter-agency meeting.
Transport operators belonging to the “Magnificent 7” group recently made a commitment to MMDA officials that they will not be joining the transport strike that the group Manibela plans to hold on July 24 to 26 in protest to the PUV modernization program.
