TRANSPORT Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya has ordered officials and employees of the Department of Transportation and Communications to stop speaking to the press about the scandals that have been swirling around it and its attached agencies, a highly placed source told The Standard Wednesday.
The order comes amid mounting calls for his resignation over a string of failures at his department, including its inability to build new comfort rooms and rehabilitate existing ones in train stations, ports and airports under the P351-million “Kayo ang Boss Ko” toilet facilities improvement project.
KBK, a foreign-assisted project, was named after a favorite motto used by President Aquino to suggest that the people are his ultimate boss.
The Commission on Audit noted that funds for the KBK project were originally earmarked for the improvement of airport facilities but were then re-aligned to line agencies of the DoTC for “toilet improvement” in support of the President’s infrastructure program in 2012.
The CoA added that construction of new restrooms and the rehabilitation of old ones have been delayed, suspended or terminated or declared failed bids because of complicated contract details.
Because of this failure, women shared the same facilities with men in several train stations and Land Transportation Office branches, and persons with disabilities were left with no option but to use regular restrooms, the CoA said.
Also as a result, the transacting public had to bear the inconvenience of long toilet queues in DoTC line agencies, including the LTO, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, Manila International Airport Authority, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, Mactan Cebu International Airport Authority, Metro Rail Transit Line 3, Philippine Ports Authority, Cebu Ports Authority, Philippine National Railways and Light Rail Transit Authority.
In the same report, CoA said Abaya’s office bought 1,271 desktop computers worth P110.46 million in 2013 at the request of the House of Representatives for distribution to their constituents, but these “are still in the stockroom and remain undistributed to the intended beneficiaries, thus defeating the purpose for which the procurement was undertaken.”
“If the computers would remain unutilized, they become obsolete and outdated after several years, hence, the government is losing money out of these procurements,” the report added.
The undistributed computers were part of the 4,810 purchased by the DoTC at the request of members of the House of Representatives and most of the beneficiaries were constituents of various congressmen from their respective congressional districts.
“The delay in the distribution and transfer of the computers to the recipients was largely caused by the difficulty on the part of the recipients in complying with the requirements of the DoTC before transfer could take place,” the CoA said.
The audit body urged the DoTC to call the attention of the concerned congressmen who made the requests, otherwise, the agency should identify other interested beneficiaries or use the units instead.
A resolution filed by Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez to investigate the toilet controversy drew support Wednesday from Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate and Parañaque Rep. Gus Tambunting.
Zarate said the toilet program of the department under Abaya’s watch is what “Daang Matuwid” is all about and he called once again for Abaya to resign.
Zarate also urged the Office of the Ombudsman to look into other anomalous transactions and contracts entered into by the DoTC under Abaya.
“Abaya and his cabal at DoTC should be investigated by Congress in the exercise of its oversight functions. While at it, we also challenge the Office of the Ombudsman to also conduct its own investigation into the many anomalous transactions in that now graft-ridden department,” Zarate said.
“Ideally, Aquino should have kicked him out as Abaya is not really expected to resign voluntarily. But as it is now, it is just wishful thinking because Aquino and Abaya belong to the same Tuwad Na Daan mold,” Zarate said.
Tambunting, of the United Nationalist Alliance of Vice President Jejomar Binay, also sought answers about the P351-million toilet improvement program.
“I think they should be held accountable for how they spent that budget. Secretary Abaya should account for it,” Tambunting said.