MALACAÑANG on Friday, December 1, slammed Vice President Leni Robredo for making it appear that the former Cabinet officials under Aquino administration were a "scapegoat" to deflect blame for the sorry state of the Metro Rail Transit (MRT)-Line 3.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said it was "unfortunate" that Robredo accused the Duterte administration of making a concerted effort to conceal its shortcomings amid glitches and problems plaguing the MRT-3.
Roque stressed that former officials of the previous administration were charged of plunder because of their "incompetence and corruption" that resulted in the worsening condition of the rail transit system.
"We find the Vice President’s remarks unfortunate. With all due respect to Vice President Robredo, the MRT-3 issue is not about covering up shortcomings," the presidential spokesman said in a statement.
"The filing of the plunder complaint against officials of the previous administration was to make them accountable... We cannot simply sweep the sins of incompetence and corruption under the rug with the harsh reality of half a million daily suffering riding public staring us in the face," he added.
At least nine members of Aquino Cabinet, including former Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya, are facing a plunder complaint before the Office of the Ombudsman over the purported anomalous P3.8-billion maintenance contract with Busan Universal Railways Inc. (Buri).
Other former secretaries charged were Manuel Roxas II (Local Government), Florencio Abad (Budget), Cesar Purisima (Finance), Jericho Petilla (Energy), Mario Montejo (Science and Technology), Voltaire Gazmin (Defense), Rogelio Singson (Public Works), and Arsenio Balisacan (National Economic and Development Authority).
Robredo, in an interview on Thursday, November 3, told the Duterte government that the filing of cases against Abaya and eight other former Cabinet officials should be based on proper evidence, and not because it merely wants to blame others for MRT woes.
"It's difficult to accuse anyone but if someone is liable, it is appropriate to file a case. We intend to file a case that is based on a correct data. It (Filing a case) should not be done to look for a scapegoat for something that has not not be done [by the accused]," she said.
"If you file a case, it should be based on the mistakes they really did. What worries me it perhaps, it's done to pass the buck to someone. It should not be tolerated," Robredo added.
Roque debunked Robredo's remark, saying that she should realize that the current administration merely "inherited" the mistakes of the past administration, which he said "destroyed the MRT."
He also cited the complaint filed by the Department of Transportation (DOTr), accusing the the now-defunct Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) led by Abaya of using the agency as "bottomless cash cow" to amass ill-gotten wealth.
"We cannot deny the fact that these are cumulative problems that the administration inherited and the long-suffering commuters of Metro Manila have known for years how the past government destroyed the MRT," Roque said.
"These officials facilitated the negotiated procurement of long-term maintenance contracts to BURI, which per the Supplemental Complaint Affidavit filed by the DOTr, 'turned the DOTC as a bottomless cash cow entering into one anomalous procurement project,'" he added.
Roque likewise reminded Robredo that President Rodrigo Duterte and his government are not making excuses and are even apologetic for the inconvenience caused by the MRT-3.
He reiterated that the current administration is doubling its efforts to address the issue.
"The administration has faced the MRT-3 mess squarely. The President has even apologized over a recent train mishap and transport officials admitted that while they cannot solve the problems overnight they are working double time to restore the convenience and reliability of the MRT-3 by getting a proven maintenance firm and buying needed parts," he said. (SunStar Philippines)