Metro Manila traffic snarled during Xi Jinping visit

MANILA, Philippines — Who was responsible for traffic management during the two-day state visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping?

Government agencies resorted to finger pointing after road closures during the visit created monstrous traffic jams and stranded commuters in Metro Manila.

Bong Nebrija, supervising operations officer of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), said traffic stood still on Tuesday night as commuters were stranded along the southbound and northbound lanes of EDSA, from Roxas Boulevard in Pasay to Timog Avenue in Quezon City.

Commuters in the city of Manila were also affected by the road closures.

“Vehicles crawled because the major arterial roads were closed during the movement of President Xi’s convoy,” Nebrija said. 

“We needed to sacrifice because we have a visitor who is a state leader. We cannot compromise the security and safety of the guests,” he said.

Nebrija said the MMDA issued traffic advisories prior to the Chinese leader’s visit.

The MMDA said the Presidential Security Group (PSG) designed the lockdown for Xi’s visit.

 But the PSG said the road closures in Metro Manila were the call of the police and the MMDA.

The MMDA said the lockdown of some roads in Bonifacio Global City in Taguig and the Skyway leading to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport was the call of the PSG. 

MMDA spokesperson Celine Pialago said they merely provided additional personnel to manage the traffic situation and followed instructions from the PSG.

“The PSG had an array of tasks for its security preparations, including traffic management, in which case, we requested asistance of the Philippine National Police and the MMDA,” PSG spokesperson Capt. Zeerah Blanche Lucrecia said in a statement. 

Lucrecia appealed for public understanding for the inconvenience caused by the road closures. 

A few hours before Xi’s departure yesterday, motorists were again stuck in monstrous traffic after the Southern Police District closed several roads going to the airport.

The traffic situation normalized after Xi left Manila.

The MMDA also impounded more than 50 private cars and issued citation tickets to the owners along Roxas Boulevard for illegal parking during Xi’s visit. – With Alexis Romero