MAGPALE
THE Cebu Provincial Government supports the granting of emergency powers to President Rodrigo Duterte to address traffic congestion in the country.
In fact, provincial officials want the emergency powers to also benefit Cebu which is experiencing a worsening traffic problem.
Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III pointed out that during Duterte’s State of the Nation Address (Sona) last month, which he personally attended in Manila, the President promised to improve the public transport system which would include Cebu.
“I’d like that Cebu would be included in the emergency powers he is asking from Congress in addressing the traffic problem. We are already almost the same as Metro Manila,” Davide said.
The Senate yesterday started its series of discussions for the possible granting of emergency powers to the President, specifically for solving the worsening traffic situation especially in Metro Manila and in Cebu.
The same support was echoed by the Cebu Provincial Board (PB).
During their regular session last Monday, the PB approved a resolution filed by Board Member Miguel Magpale of the fifth district expressing “strong support” for the grant of emergency powers to Duterte to quickly solve the transportation crisis in the country most especially in Cebu.
“We hope that Cebu can benefit from this. Traffic in Cebu is really getting from bad to worse. Fuel is being burned uselessly, meetings are not attended, business deals are hampered. On the economic scale, we need to benefit from resolving traffic,” Magpale told Cebu Daily News.
Magpale heads the PB’s Committee on Commerce and Industry.
He said he hopes there will also be additional infrastructure projects for the province and that implementation should be fast tracked so as not to further worsen the situation.
Magpale said the other PB members agreed with his resolution during their caucus discussion before the PB session last Monday.
“Although the city is the boundary for traffic, everybody in the province is already affected. Traffic can already be felt in Consolacion, Liloan and Compostela and even Danao,” he said.
In the south, he said traffic congestion starts from Talisay City all the way to Minglanilla, Naga City, San Fernando and Carcar City.
He said five years ago, these areas used to have flowing traffic.
“Worsening traffic is a sign of progress, more people have cars going to malls, shopping, dining. But it is something that we have to deal with, it’s something that we in government should be much more prepared with,” Magpale added