Does the MMDA matter?

There is now talk about abolishing the Metro Manila Development Authority or MMDA. Pro-abolitionists say the MMDA, headed by someone who is not even elected like the mayors of its component cities, often oversteps its authority and encroaches on the powers of the local governments.

The MMDA is supposed to set policies and coordinate traffic management in its 16 cities and one municipality (Pateros). But will each component willingly give up its authority? They recently agreed to have a unified ticketing system, to be implemented on April 1. But have they unified traffic rules, and interpretation of the rules? Each city has its own traffic enforcers, and I don’t know if they all got and read the same memo.

Then there is the revived street clearing drive, which supposedly bans parking on the streets. From what I’ve seen, this is kanya-kanyang diskarte for each city, even each barangay. Some ban parking outright; others only for certain hours in certain streets. But who enforces this no-parking rule?

The MMDA has been in existence for decades, and traffic in the metro has been and is still a gigantic mess. Honestly then, how useful is the MMDA? – Peter Y. Perez, Mandaluyong