PHILIP Tan, past president of the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said traffic congestion in Mandaue is a display of “incompetence in the government in its highest form.”
Tan said severe traffic has disrupted business operations.
“Poor productivity in our operations has cost millions of pesos in terms of delays, waste of time and fuel,” he said.
Tan said the 14 to 21 hours that people waste getting stuck in traffic every week makes Cebu’s congestion worse than Manila.
“How do we expect one day to become like Singapore if our mindset belongs to the age of incompetence? N.A.T.O. –no action, talk only,” he said.
Benefit
Tan said the Mandaue city government should hire the right people to resolve the worsening traffic in Mandaue City.
Rep. Luigi Quisumbing of Cebu’s 6th district said the traffic congestion in Metro Cebu, particularly Mandaue City is partly due to the increase in the number of private vehicles.
He defended the ongoing road projects, saying the nine road projects by the DPWH and two other road projects initiated by the Mandaue City government will benefit the residents in the long run.
“I also sit through traffic. But I take solace in the fact that in completed areas, there has been tremendous improvement in traffic flow and the drainage system,” Quisumbing said.
“I’ve spoken to DPWH and they are cognizant of the fact that we have several big events lined up like the Ironman, APEC, and International Eucharistic Congress,” the congressman said.
He said these events are the reason why the national government is helping host cities upgrade their road networks.
“Cebu will continue to be the top choice for events like these and DPWH feels that we need to improve our road networks,” Quisumbing said.
Quisumbing said the creation of a traffic management authority is Cebu’s best bet in solving metropolitan-wide traffic woes.