Limited mass transport system ready to roll with IATF okay

TRANSPORT Secretary Arthur Tugade on Wednesday said the country’s mass transport system is ready to resume operations as soon as the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) gives the go-ahead and under condition of full compliance by operators with health protocols for social distancing and monitoring.

Speaking at the “Laging Handa” briefing, Tugade said among those that will be covered are public utility buses, the rail system, and inter-island ferries although not in full capacity and only with limited operability.

He did not mention airlines, public utility jeepneys, UV Express and ride hailing services.

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Tugade underscored the insistence of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) that even if allowed to restart partial operations, mass transport companies must observe all recommendations by heath authorities regarding precautions against the spread of the novel coronavirus.

“These were discussed in the IATF. A partial operability of public transportation, particularly the buses, should not be on full capacity… maybe only 30 percent. We must maintain social distancing,” he said.

The DOTR chief said aside from low passenger capacity, the agency will also impose a “no mask, no ride” policy, availability of disinfectants at terminals, and thermal scanning.

Same health protocols would be enforced for the Light Rail Transit Lines 1 and 2 (LRT 1 and 2), Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT3) and the trains of the Philippine National Railways (PNR).

Tugade said the DOTR will also recommend resumption of inter-island ferry services for areas with low-to-zero cases of COVID-19.

“We are looking closely at these things. We will assess if the conditions of these areas will justify resumption of ferry services and will recommend it to the IATF accordingly,” he said.

The transport official likewise said free shuttle services for health workers and front liners have been increased from the initial three routes to 20 as of this week. He said the program is serviced by 160 buses ferrying 67,000 in Metro Manila alone and 260,000 in all the other regions combined.

Tugade also reported the rental of two 2Go vessels to serve as quarantine ships for seafarers and incoming overseas Filipino workers — one with 1,400 bed capacity and a smaller one with 400 beds.

Between the two vessel he said there are now 300 persons under quarantine. Both are provisioned with dining counters, a cafeteria, clean restrooms and other amenities to ensure the workers’ personal comfort.

He said the government rented the ship for P35 million which he considers cost-effective by computing the number of bed space and usage.

In addition, Tugade said the Eva Macapagal Terminal in Pier 15 in the Port of Manila had already been put to service with 216 beds separated into three levels of treatment: the more serious, less serious, and benign.

“The quarantine terminal is all fully equipped and attended by two dedicated ambulances for the two maritime vessels. It has its own staff of doctors and other medical personnel provided by the Philippine Coast Guard,” he said.

He added the DOTR has also obtained approval from the IATF for the start of the agency’s infrastructure projects in light of favorable conditions brought about by the enhanced community quarantine.

“We will implement a mitigated approach on these infrastructure work taking advantage of the ideal conditions to speed up the timetable. Among those approved are 13 rail projects which we can start or have already started this week,” he said.

Tugade explained that the work on the railways entail relocating utilities including water, power and land lines as well as the actual laying of the steel rails for the coaches. “This is a most opportune time since we can work without interruption while the lines are not active. We can turn this COVID 19 situation to our advantage,” he said.

 NO TO POGOs

 Senate minority leader Franklin Drilon and Sen. Francis Pangilinan shot down the proposal of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) to allow the resumption of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) operations to boost state funds in fighting COVID-19.

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“The resumption of POGO will serve the rationale for a partial lifting of the ECQ to enable essential industries to operate… Since when did POGO become an essential industry?” Drilon asked.

Pangilinan said the proposal reflects the Duterte administration’s prioritization of China in the guise of boosting state funds.

“Uunahin pa ang negosyo at trabaho ng mga Tsino sa POGO habang walang makain at walang hanapbuhay ang mga Pilipino dahil sa lockdown? Boost state funds? Eh Department of Finance na ang nagsabi na hindi nagbabayad ng bilyong-bilyong pisong buwis ang mga ‘yan (Shall we put first the business and work of the Chinese in POGOs while our countrymen are going hungry and have no earnings due to the lockdown? Boost state funds? The Department of Finance has already said that these POGO do not pay billions in taxes so how can they boost state funds),” Pangilinan said.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue, in a Senate hearing in February, revealed that POGOs still owe the government P50 billion in franchise, corporate, and other forms of taxes.

PAGCOR collects 2 percent of the total gross profits from POGOs but the Anti-Money Laundering Council reported a discrepancy in the net inflow of money from POGOs, citing that only P7 billion were counted of the P54 billion that flowed in and out of the country.

Almost 2,000 foreign POGO personnel work without the required Alien Employment Permit, and around 4,000 have been discovered to be using only one identical Tax Identification Number (TIN), according to previous reports. — With Raymond Africa

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