The ‘tuwid na daan’ to tragedy

We are commuters. We are angry.

The Train Riders Network is outraged over the derailment of the Metro Rail Transit (MRT 3) trains at the Taft Avenue station, resulting in 38 persons injured.

Indeed, this is the worst accident in the history of MRT 3.

This incident is a consequence of gross negligence on the part of both government and the privately run Metro Rail Transit Corp. (MRTC). The MRTC oversees the maintenance of the MRT 3, while the Department of Transportation and Communications oversees its operations.

The “tuwid na daan” of President Aquino is a tragic path.

Commuters are fed up with the conditions that we have to bear with daily in the country’s unsafe, inefficient and profit-oriented mass railway system. Instead of subsidizing this mass transport to make it safe and affordable for the people, the government insists on privatizing it and raising its fares, while altogether turning a blind eye on corruption.

Maintenance and improvement of the railway system, including the purchase of new trains, have been problematic because of onerous privatization agreements between the government and the private sector. The trains breached its maximum service capacity of 350,000 in 2006. According to government statistics, 620,000 passengers take the train daily.

It bothers us that until now, the likes of former MRT general manager Al Vitangcol, who was accused of attempting to extort $30 million in exchange for a contract to acquire newer MRT trains, have not been made accountable.

The DOTC’s “assistance” to those injured is only a pittance. We expect Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya, as well as MRT 3 officer in charge Honorito Chaneco, to be held responsible for  this tragedy.

The commuters have long been silently seething in anger due to being denied the services that they have long deserved.

—JAMES RELATIVO,

spokesperson,

Train Riders Network,

train.riders.network.media2@

gmail.com