Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade inspecting MRT-3 maintenance works. Photo courtesy of Department of Transportation
Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade on Thursday scolded maintenance personnel of the Metro Rail Transit 3 (MRT-3) over faulty record- and inventory-keeping of spare parts to be installed into defective train coaches.
Tugade was at the MRT-3 depot to inspect the general maintenance works of the entire MRT-3 system. The entire MRT-3 was closed from Holy Wednesday (March 28) to Easter Sunday (April 1) to give way to maintenance activities.
鈥淚鈥檓 not happy with your record-keeping. I鈥檓 not happy with your inventory keeping. Ang fast-moving at laging ginagamit (na equipment) dapat nasa bukana ng warehouse,鈥� Tugade said, as quoted by his communications director Goddes Libiran.
(All the fast-moving and frequently used equipment should be at the front of the warehouse.)
鈥淚mportante yang imbentaryo dahil dyan ko malalaman kung kulang o nag-o-over order kayo. Hindi pwedeng manu-mano yan! If you don鈥檛 address this now, time will come na mauubos na naman yung spare parts dahil hindi maayos ang pag-account ninyo,鈥� the Transportation chief was quoted as saying.
(The inventory is important because that鈥檚 where we鈥檒l find out if it鈥檚 not enough or if you鈥檙e over-ordering. It can鈥檛 be done by hand. If you don鈥檛 address this now, time will come when spare parts will run out again because your account isn鈥檛 in order.)
MRT-3 media relations officer Aly Narvaez said they aim to run 15 trains after the Holy Week, or by April 2, Monday.
鈥淗opefully we can do it Monday, but it will still depend on how our maintenance works will go this week,鈥� Narvaez told reporters via text message.
鈥淎lso, even if we are able to restore 45 cars by Sunday, they still have to undergo necessary safety and operational checks and test runs before we can deploy them for revenue operations,鈥� the MRT-3 official said. /je