DOTr: Help desk in ports, a must

THE Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) chairman Martin Delgra III said that the Malasakit Help Desk (MHD) of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) is a necessity in bus terminals, seaports, and airports.

“This is the directive of DOTr Secretary Arthur Tugade. Ang atong nakita diha why the DOTr put up a MHD sa terminals because kailangan og mu-assist sa mga pasahero sa mga terminals (We see that there is a need for DOTr to put this up so that the passengers with concerns could be assisted),” Delgra told reporters on Thursday, February 7.

Last January 28, DOTr opened MHDs in airports, seaports, train stations, and land terminals as a one-stop shop for passenger assistance.

Accordingly, MHD can receive or handle inquiries and complaints and provide road-related assistance. It could also facilitate the refund of terminal fees, provide attestation of cause of trip cancellation or delays, deliver emergency medical assistance, accept reports of possible security threats, and extend other forms of assistance to passengers or commuters.

The said desk also opened in Davao City Overland Transport Terminal (DCOTT) which DCOTT head Aisa Usop commended as a “good” initiative of the DOTr.

However, Usop mentioned that even before there was MHD, they already have an assistance desk inside DCOTT which also functions the same.

“Kami diri sa DCOTT, naa napud mi daan public assistance counter sa lounge which naa pud mag-assist everytime. Pero dako pud na og tabang diha ang MHD ((Here in DCOTT, we already have a public assistance assistance counter which assists passengers everytime but the MHD is also a big help),” she said.