MRT3 general manager relieved from post

Metro Rail Transit-3 (MRT3) general manager Oscar Bongon has been relieved from his post, the office of Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon said Tuesday.

The reason for Bongon’s removal from office was not yet provided but the Department of Transportation (DOTr) has already submitted a list of names for his possible replacement, based on a Super Radyo dzBB report of Mark Makalalad.

At a press conference on Tuesday, Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro confirmed that there’s already a shortlist of individuals who may take over the helm of MRT3. 

“Ang sabi po sa atin ay nakapag-submit na po yata ng listahan ng listahan, nakapag-submit na po sa PMS (Presidential Management Staff), at hinihintay na lamang po kung sino po ang maaaring maging susunod na GM sa MRT,” Castro said. 

(We were told that the list has been submitted to the PMS, so we are just waiting to see who the next general manager of the MRT3 will be.) 

The MRT3 was hounded by a few issues in the recent weeks, one of which was the escalator incident at the Taft Avenue Station which left at least 10 passengers injured.

The ascending escalator was reportedly packed with passengers when it malfunctioned, causing some people to fall on top of each other while a female passenger also hurt her ankle. The DOTr explained that the primary chain of the escalator broke off.

Earlier this month, the MRT-3 northbound train also temporarily stopped operating for a few hours. Passengers tried to open the windows of the train after it lost power near Santolan-Annapolis Station.

The passengers also reportedly smelled smoke and heard what sounded like blasts two times.

But prior to that, the train already experienced a mishap at Shaw Boulevard Station after it suddenly stopped causing the standing passengers to lose balance.

Following an inspection on Monday morning, Dizon also called on the management of MRT3 to extend its evening operations by an hour. —Giselle Ombay/KG/RF, GMA Integrated News