THE camp of Vice President Jejomar Binay on Wednesday alleged that the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) was responsible for the "horrendous" traffic situation in Metro Manila because it did not release some P322 million for road and traffic management in several cities and provinces.
Joey Salgado, head of media affairs of the Office of the Vice President, said that traffic would not have been such a "punishment" for commuters and motorists in Metro Manila and other urban centers if Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas II released P322,070,727 for the Special Local Road Fund (SLRF) for 43 local governments as early as 2013.
Roxas, who was endorsed for the presidency by President Benigno Aquino III and who will run under the ruling Liberal Party, is Binay's perceived main opponent in the 2016 elections.
Salgado said that a 2013 Commission on Audit (COA) report showed Roxas held back SLRF funds from 43 local governments, including 10 in Metro Manila.
The 10 local governments were Las Piñas City, P4,342,544; Mandaluyong City, P3,574,974; Manila, P19,520,467; Muntinlupa City, P3,490,178; Parañaque City, P6,633,969; Pasay City, P3,303,884; Quezon City, P46,994,143; San Juan City, P3,420,223; Taguig City, P5,839,206; and Valenzuela City, P2,868,692.
Salgado noted that traffic congestion in Metro Manila costs the country P2.4 billion in lost potential income daily and P962 million in hospitalization expenses.
"We lose 20,000 work hours daily due to traffic and yet we find out the Department of Interior and Local Government could have helped LGUs do something about road maintenance if only the SLRF meant to augment their budget for this was released," he added.
Citing the COA report, Salgado said Roxas did not release the SLRF because the 43 local governments failed in the Seal of Good Housekeeping (SGH), which, although an internal DILG criteria for releasing SLRF, was not supported by any law.
Salgado agreed with the COA observation that the SGH can "perceived as a punishment to the constituents and not just for the few who mishandled/mismanaged the financial resources of the 43 LGUs."
"The non-release due to DILG internal criteria is even contrary to the law. Under the existing law or RA 8974, the SLRF should be distributed to provincial and city governments exclusively for maintenance and improvement of local roads," Salgado said.
Under Republic Act 8974, LGUs can tap the SLRF or five percent of the Motor Vehicle Users' Charge (MVUC) "for road maintenance and the improvement of road drainage, for the installation of adequate and efficient road safety devices and, traffic management."
The law stipulated that SLRF is collected from motorists to fund maintenance projects for national and provincial roads.
COA said exempting local governments from access to SLRF because they did not pass the SGH requirements are contrary to the Road Board Policy and MVUC Law.
Salgado said Roxas should not have disallowed access to SLRF based on the SGH grading since COA said passing the SGH is not a requirement for the LGUs to avail of the SLRF.
"It is DILG’s internal criteria for determining which LGUs are to be prioritized," COA said.
Salgado assailed Roxas and DILG for using the SGH as an excuse to withhold funds from certain LGUs.
"It should be released as intended by the law. The law is above any criteria DILG has set," Salgado said.
"If the funds were released then, roads could have been maintained and traffic management measures could have been put in place to ease traffic in Metro Manila and other urban centers," he added.
He said drainage areas could have also been cleared, and there would have been less flooding in the metro.
"Time is always important when it comes to implementing projects and programs," Salgado added.
The DILG could have found another way to use to funds to develop roads and improve traffic management.
The agency lost the opportunity to relieve commuters and motorists from the traffic situation in the country by not using the allotment intended for it, Salgado said.
"In excluding the 43 LGUs and denying them access to the funds, the LGU officials were not the ones who were punished but the taxpayers whose money the DILG held on to which should have been used for road repairs and road expansion to make traveling in the country faster and easier for them."
"DILG also hampered economic growth when it did not release the funds at the time it was allotted and needed. We all know traffic hours cost the economy funds our country needs to provide services to the people. Kaya nga sila nagbabayad ng taxes," Salgado said.
On Tuesday, President Benigno Aquino III approved the deployment of the police Highway Patrol Group (HPG) to serve as the lead traffic law enforcement agency on Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue, Metro Manila's main highway.
HPG personnel will be deployed starting on September 7 on six identified choke points along Edsa: Balintawak, Cubao, Ortigas, Shaw Boulevard, Guadalupe and Taft Avenue.
HPG director Chief Superintendent Arnold Gunnacao said there would be 18 PNP personnel per shift in each choke point, eight from the HPG and 10 from the local police.
The HPG men will be assisted by personnel from the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA), Land Transportation Office (LTO) and Land Transportation, Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).
Gunnacao said undisciplined drivers and street vendors contribute to the worsening traffic situation on Edsa.
He said the HPG, in coordination with the local government units, the MMDA and local police, is conducting operations to remove street vendors and illegally parked vehicles along the sidewalk of choke points.
“Walang sisinuhin. Ang kasunduan ang goal namin ay mapaluwag ang trapiko, mapaganda at maayos ang pagtakbo ng mga sasakyan. Hangga’t maaari mababawasan ‘yung mga loopholes na nangyayari sa ating kalye lalo sa Edsa,” he said.
Apprehending traffic violators would still be the responsibility of the MMDA, LTO and LTFRB.
“We will be requesting more MMDA personnel para sa mga mang-titicket. Ang halos trabaho lang ng HPG is to assist traffic, to control and manage traffic then ‘yung violators, may mga HPG na huhuli and the ‘yung MMDA sila mag-titicket,” Gunnacao said.
Traffic policemen used to man the traffic along Edsa before the MMDA took over in the early 1990s.
“History says na nung HPG pa nagma-man sa Edsa, kinakatakutan ng drivers so they follow the rules and regulations as far as the traffic is concerned... Pag ini-implement talaga ‘yung batas, sinusunod ng tao,” said Gunnacao. (CVB/Third Anne Peralta-Malonzo/Sunnex)