Pro-BRT letter to reach Duterte

CEBU, Philippines — Kilusang Pagbabago, a mass movement of supporters of President Duterte, is appealing for the immediate implementation of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in Cebu City.

In a statement, KP-Cebu leaders said they are planning to hand over to the president a letter expressing their appeal to have the BRT implementation continued.

They said that under the administration’s Build-Build-Build program, the BRT is among the mass transport projects for the city.

The letter to Duterte would be signed by KP-Cebu leader lawyer Rex Fernandez and KP Visayas lead convener Doris Isubal-Mongaya, among others.

Among the reasons they cited for the implementation of the BRT are that it is designed for the poor because “aside from the affordable fare which will be competitive with the dare of PUJs, the BRT gives commuters priority, in contrast to the rich who prefer to ride in their cars.”

The group likewise claimed that the poor in Cebu support the BRT.  KP members, most of whom live in poor and middle-income communities, attest that their neighbors want the Duterte administration to push through with the project, it said.

The group also cited recent statements of support by the PUJ coop CITRASCO and the Cebu City Urban Poor Alliance, as well as the reported result of a survey of the Social Weather Station that showed an “extremely strong net agreement of +65” for the BRT.

“BRT is the immediate solution. Stopping BRT, as recommended by the Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas and the Department of Transportation does not help the traffic situation and will leave Cebu suffering for the next 10-15 years. The BRT must continue,” the statement read.

KP is a movement formed from the Duterte campaign team during the 2016 presidential campaign organized by then national campaign manager and now Cabinet Secretary Leoncio Evasco Jr.

Today, KP is the Duterte administration’s non-government partner in carrying out its poverty alleviation program “Biyaya ng Pagbabago.” — JMD (FREEMAN)