Senator Richard Gordon said the use sirens by high government officials is fine as long as it is not abused in answer to Vice President Leni Robredo who earlier called on government officials to refrain from using sirens to cut through traffic.
“You know yung mga yan pa-cute e (they are just trying to look cute). Like, ‘di kami aabot sa mga hearing namin (we would not make it to our hearings),” Gordon said in a media interview.
“Wang-wang (sirens) is okay as long as you don’t abuse it. Alam mo, OA yun e (You know that’s overacting),” he added.
The chair of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee cited his experience abroad during Presidential state visits, where traffic is stopped to make way for dignitaries to pass through.
Gordon said he does not use sirens, but admitted though to having two motorcycle escorts.
“I can do without it but alam naman niyo ang tulog ko (you know that my sleep is only) four hours a day. Meron pa akong opisina sa (I also have an office in) Red Cross which is my volunteer work. You cannot take that away from me,” the lawmaker said.
“What is practical, what is pragmatic should be best. Let us not learn what is abusive,” Gordon said.
He said those who abuse the use of sirens should be arrested or removed from office.
“The trouble is wala tayong nahuhuli (nobody is arrested),” Gordon said.
“Kahit na sino, may kaibigan lang dun sa military, bibigyan ng lisensiya. Di pwede yun, dapat hulihin natin (Anybody, who just happened to have a friend in the military, is given a license. That cannot be allowed, they should be arrested),” he said.
Meanwhile, Gordon dismissed as “impractical” the call of Gabriela Party-list lawmaker Arlene Brosas for lawmakers, and even President Rodrigo Duterte, to commute to work every Monday to experience what ordinary commuters feel during the rush hour.
“That’s a good suggestion but I think it’s an impractical one because we know what the traffic is,” Gordon said.
Instead, he suggested that Congress should consider some of his major proposals, including infrastructure changes, that can be undertaken to ease Metro Manila’s traffic woes.
“Like the carpooling law; maagang papasok mga students, maaga ring uuwi (students could go to school early and go home early), staggered working hours; and bawasan ang traffic lights para mabilis (reduce the traffic lights to speed up traffic) among others. These could be studied,” Gordon said. (PNA)