METRO MANILA LGUs SHOULD PAY MMDA FOR DOING LGUs’ JOB

True, it is unrealistic to expect LGUs to keep their sidewalks and streets clear of obstruction less they ignore the risk of losing votes come next election. To a lot of their constituents, doing this may be like “biting the hand that feeds you”. That is why MMDA should expand their street and sidewalk clearing operations task force to cover more ground and operate with more frequency. And since this is the LGUs’ job that they’re doing for them – the LGUs should pay for the costs equitably.

BIRDS OF A FEATHER: SHOW OF BRAZEN ARROGANCE

Show of brazen arrogance by a motorist (claim to 15-minutes of infamy dubbed "5-minute girl"). She deserves more than just a ticket for hitting the MMDA enforcer's motorbike and refusing to produce her license for a very long time. I'm so disappointed that Col. Nebrija let her and her husband get away with just a ticket. Shameless couple.

I remember Pres. Duterte said that once when he was still mayor of Davao that he told a Davao judge to move his illegally-parked vehicle OR ELSE. The message was - you can't do anything you want just coz you're a gov't official. The message got through to this judge and every Davao City gov't officer after that incident. I hope that PRRD teaches this couple a lesson in a

DESTINED TO BE AN AVENGING ANGEL?

The “Avenging Angel" is seen by David to stand "between the earth and the heaven, with a drawn sword in his hand stretched out against Israel's enemies.” There has never been, and there will never be, another president like Mayor Rodrigo Duterte. Nobody had, or will ever have, the courage to go against criminals, big business interests and the oligarchy – like Duterte has. The 1% elite, backed by the upper middle class who dream of membership into the club, have always had their way - before The Punisher came and ruffled their neatly-pressed feathers.

Let’s hope that the institutions and policies that he’ll establish during his term will be carried on by someone or by a party who believes the same ideals that he sought to promote.

PRESIDENT RODRIGO DUTERTE ONCE OFFERED ME HIS HARLEY-DAVIDSON MOTORCYCLE

“Rodrigo Roa Duterte is officially the country’s 16th president. But for what it’s worth, allow me to recall an experience with the man a few years ago that convinced me he should be the one to hold the top government post of the land.”

To say the guy’s reputation preceded him is an understatement. Back then, he was already popular for bringing back order to the once-chaotic Davao City. Whether his policies were appropriate is still subject for debate, but they were effective.

Tourism Malaysia officials accompanied us on this trip, and they requested me for some photos of Digong visiting the Sepang Circuit for promotional use. No problem, I reckoned. Plus, I supposed I would have the chance to meet one of the most colorful

SEN. DICK GORDON TO LASCAÑAS: FOOL ME ONCE, SHAME ON YOU; FOOL ME TWICE, SHAME ON ME!

It was apt that Sen. Richard Gordon refused to re-open the Senate inquiry on alleged Extrajudicial Killings (EJKs) on account of a witness’ “recantation” – because SPO2 Arthur Lascañas has shown that he has 0% credibility. His 180-deg. turn from his previous testimony, after being under the wings of the Catholic church - known staunch critics of Pres. Duterte’s war on drugs, casts shadow on his motivations.

Sen. Ping Lacson may not have a choice if the committee on peace and order that he chairs opens an inquiry on the matter. Liberal Party senators will likely see to that. It’s all about media mileage, although it is highly doubtful that they can muster

DENR SEC. GINA LOPEZ’S LEGACY: A TRUE-BLUE CRUSADE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND FOR OUR FUTURE

Sec. Gina Lopez of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, a renowned crusader herself even before being tapped by Pres. Duterte to head the agency, has taken “baby steps” to help ensure that local mining operations are kept in check by closing down or suspending operations of several big mining outfits after an initial audit. Now the more difficult work begins – ensuring that these mining firms comply to strict environmental laws and high-end mining operational standards before they can even resume operations. If they comply and resume operation, strict monitoring should be in place to ensure

TWO SENATORS ALLEGE THAT “FAKE NEWS” THREATEN NAT’L SECURITY AND WANT THE ISSUE PROBED: ARE THEY JUST “SOUR GRAPING”?

Have “fake news” and “trolls” made such an alarming impact on swaying people’s hearts and minds that the two senators are now making a fuss over it? How is the issue any different from a candidate who’s waging psy-ops to defeat an opponent on the election campaign trail? How can it amount into a so-called “national security” concern? During the EDSA Revolt, former Pres. Ramos made announcements or “fake news” on defections of military units who haven’t actually turned on the Marcoses in order to encourage other units to follow suit – and we were quick to dismissed it as a valid means of waging psychological warfare.

Battles for the people’s hearts and minds have been fought over and over again for a long time – only the methods have changed due to today’s interconnected world. Information gets around faster and wider. Those who take better advantage of it

NOW THAT PHILIPPINES IS COZYING UP TO RUSSIA AND CHINA, U.S. ASSETS AND ALLIES WILL TRY TO OUST PRES. DUTERTE BY DISCREDITING HIM LOCALLY AND ABROAD

It won’t be a surprise if the article of The Guardian in UK that claimed Pres. Duterte is out of control in his drug war is a U.S. asset-instigated attempt to oust him by discrediting him abroad. Since the crusading Philippine leader started cozying up to long-time U.S. adversaries Russia and China, even “expelling” U.S. troops from the Philippines by terminating their joint military exercises – the U.S. has been trying to discredit his leadership locally and internationally. It is not about human rights or Pres. Duterte’s drug war – because the U.S. is the no. 1 human rights violator, they’re just good at disguising their wars as righteous crusades – it is all about protecting their interests in the Philippines and in Southeast Asia.

The U.S. invaded Iraq on the pretense of seizing WMDs (Weapons of Mass Destruction) but none was ever found and proof of its non-existence was known by the U.S. even before the invasion. The U.S. even claimed that Pres. Saddam Hussein committed genocide by gassing his opponents – no proof of mass murder at the scale they alleged was ever established.

PROs AND CONs OF DOING BUSINESS IN MALABON CITY: SPEEDY “ONE-STOP-SHOP” PERMIT RENEWAL BUT 2017 FEES HIKED BY UP TO A WHOPPING 40%

It is not the renowned pancit or the seasonal flooding. It is that Malabon City has become one of the most expensive places to do business in a drastic and prohibitive move for 2017 by Mayor Len-Len Oreta. Compared to Makati City, where a business grossing P120K/yr. pays only P6,000, Malabon City’s skyrocketed from P9,000 in 2016 to a whopping P13,500 for the 2017 renewal for the same grossed amount and business type! Many small and medium-sized business owners were surprised (and shocked) and were questioning the sudden and enormous increase.

This unprecedented and unreasonable move by Mayor Len-Len Oreta and his administrators overshadowed Malabon City’s more-improved, speedier “one-stop-shop” system that gives business owners a chance to renew business permits within a

P23.3 BILLION IN UNCHANGED OLD BILLS: BSP MUST DEFER TIMELINE BY ANOTHER 1-2 YEARS OR NOT DEMONETIZED AT ALL

Did you know that the U.S. doesn’t demonetize their old bills even if the new ones have more security features? There is even a law in the US prohibiting demonetization http://www.philstar.com/business/2015/12/13/1532033/demonetization-demonization). Then why is it that the Philippines’ Central Bank (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas or BSP) is demonetizing Philippine currency given its findings that up to date, Dec. 28, 2016, over P23.3 BILLION is still in circulation or hasn’t been replaced?

In retrospect, BSP launched its information drive to demonetize the previous design in 2014, wherein it was announced that 2015 will be the last year that it will be a legal tender and 2016 will be the year banks can change them. It seemed that it was

FIGHT TOBACCO LOBBYING: GOV’T SHOULD QUADRUPLE OR MORE “SIN TAXES” ON CIGARETTES

Smoking tobacco (or cigarette) kills – this is a fact. Worse, it doesn’t affect just the smoker but those who inhale the unfiltered, “second-hand” smoke, too. So why haven’t governments, specifically ours, banned its use?

One reason may be that some in government are already addicted to smoking and have sympathies with the vice. Another is the powerful lobbying by big tobacco manufacturers, sellers and growers (lobbying can take many forms such as persuasion,

NO JAIL TIME FOR MINOR OFFENSES: CONGRESS SHOULD PASS A LAW ALLOWING CANING

Caning is a widely-used form of legal corporal punishment in Singapore. The most severe is judicial-type, this is for male convicts under the age of 50, as substitute for short prison terms or in combination with prison terms and fines, for a wide range of offences under the Criminal Procedure Code. If the offender is under 18, he may receive up to 10 strokes of the cane, but a lighter cane will be used in this case. Boys under 16 may be sentenced to caning only by the High Court.

We should emulate the Singaporean, Malaysian and Brunei form of corporal punishment in our penal code, this way, we don’t have to imprison those convicted of minor offenses that traditionally warranted a few months’ imprisonment. This will help ease

U.S. ACCUSES CHINA OF BULLYING: THE U.S. JUST DON’T WANT THE COMPETITION

The documentary “Princes of the Yen” that aired on ABS-CBN News Channel (ANC) last night tried to explain how powerful, moneyed cartels behind international banks that include the Int’l Monetary Fund, World Bank, European (Union) Central Bank and U.S. Federal Reserve manipulated and coerced less powerful nations into economic and political submission. These private groups are so powerful that they have tremendous influence on western powers (European and U.S. gov’ts) which in turn support them with economic, political and military might.

When the U.S. says, “you’re our ally so we will back you up” – it only means that they’re going to go as far as protecting their self-interests but beyond that, you’re on your own. Or in other words, “so long as it serves America's interests, you can count

THOSE WHO PERPETRATE UNIMAGINABLE VIOLENCE TO INNOCENT VICTIMS HAVE FORFEITED THEIR RIGHT TO LIFE

Just a few weeks’ ago, a CCTV in Taguig City caught an incident involving an 18-yr. old Adamson University student, Nick Russel Oniot, walking home who had the unfortunate fate of being the target of two vicious types of criminals. One perpetrator tried to grab the victim’s backpack - who instinctively resisted - but instead of using threats or coercion to make the victim back down, the second perpetrator suddenly and deliberately stabbed him (13 times) to death. In this case, justice was very swift – the stabber was caught within 24 hours and killed as he “resisted” escorting officers during a transfer and the other was also brought into custody but later died in jail.

On Tues., Dec. 13, 2016, a Grade 10 student in Baguio City, Kenneth Velasco, was brutally stabbed 40 times in what seemed like a robbery. The measly heist consists of the young victim’s cellphone and P200 school money. It is unimaginable how

CAUGHT IN THE ACT: 2 BI OFFICIALS IN WRONGDOING THINK WE’RE GULLIBLE

The 2 Bureau of Immigration (BI) Asst. Commissioners, Michael Robles and Al Argosino, were reported to have been caught by camera (CCTV) in the act of receiving P50 million in bribe money from a representative (ex-Gen. Wally Sombero) of fugitive Jack Lam but they insisted on denying it. They are now claiming (after their wrongdoing was exposed) that it was a legitimate “operation” to flush out and catch would-be bribers in Lam’s group.

Legitimate operation? What operation? I think that they’re just divulging it only after they’ve been exposed! Besides, if it was a legitimate operation then proper, timely and ample notifications (with documentations) should have been done. There’s nothing

THE MYTH OF A CLASSLESS SOCIETY

Communism, as we all know by now, is a failed ideology. Why? It was primarily based on the aspirations of a classless society. A classless society is a myth. A pigment of our lofty ambitions – and realistically – of our imaginations.

Human society, just like other non-human groups, is naturally hierarchical. Singapore’s great PM Lee Kuan Yew was merely stating a fact when he said, “The human being is an unequal creature. That is a fact. All the great religions, all the great movements, all the great political ideology, say let us make the human being as equal as possible. In fact, he is not equal,

5 PHILIPPINE PRESIDENTS ALLOWED FOR MARCOS BURIAL AT LIBINGAN TO HAPPEN

Five Presidents had the chance to pass a law or an executive order banning the burial of the late dictator and plunderer at the Libingan ng mga Bayani – but none did. All five presidents are guilty of political accommodation to the so-called “solid north” either for a chance at a political truce or votes or something else. No one wanted to bite the bullet by risking to alienate the (obviously) powerful Ilocano vote but now that Pres. Duterte is fulfilling his campaign promise, they’re blaming him.

This is a campaign promise that Pres. Rodrigo Duterte made and now that he has been elected president probably partly because of it, how can he not fulfill it? We shouldn’t blame Pres. Duterte because his predecessors chose to deliberately sit

EMBRACING DISCIPLINE OVER DEMOCRACY

Lord John Dalberg Acton once quoted, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely”. This may be true in most cases, but not always.

The late Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore may be an exception - one of those remarkable individuals who rose to the pedestal of greatness through his resolve to “put things in order” for the general welfare. Of course, his successful leadership may have meant occasionally adapting a strongman’s tactics, but it seemed that he wielded that power for the greater good. Today he is generally revered for his work in transforming Singapore from third world city-state to first world status in one

THE VALID POLICE DISPERSAL OF THE VIOLENT RALLY AT THE U.S. EMBASSY

Rally organizers knew that a peaceful program or rally will have no media impact so they’d probably planned the vandalism and deliberate agitations even before the protest action started. What they didn’t planned on was that their errant agitations would cause a hothead to run over their ranks with a police van.

If they were peaceful as they claimed, we would have seen a rally just like the one held by Marcos loyalists at the Supreme Court just a few days prior. But instead we saw agitated protesters charging the police line, we saw vandals spray-painting and

A POLITICIZED INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT (ICC): THE PHILIPPINES SHOULD PULL OUT

Did you know that the Philippines can pull out of the International Criminal Court (ICC) at any time? The Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC, allows for states to withdraw from the ICC. In fact, some world powers (countries) refuse membership in the ICC or do not recognized its authority or jurisdiction. Believe it or not, the United States (U.S.) is one of them.

Israel had refused to be a party to the ICC because it has concerns that political pressure on the Court would lead it to reinterpret international law or to "invent new crimes".

METRO MANILA 4-DAY SCHOOL WEEK WILL ALSO HELP PARENTS AND STUDENTS

There’s a proposal going around about the 4-day work week in order to ease traffic congestion in Metro Manila, this is good as long as the business sector doesn’t mind. Although eventually they may not have a choice anyhow but why don’t we try the 4-day school week first?

Every daily commuter knows that during summer vacation the usual long queues at LRT and MRT stations are drastically shorter and the usual choke points on major roads that happen on school zones are gone. That’s because a huge number of students (commuters or with vehicles) aren’t using the PUVs or roads. That’s what we’re aiming to re-enact one day every

HURRAY! ROAD SPACE-SAVING DOUBLE-DECKER BUSES ARE NOW HERE FOR DOTR’S P2P TRANSPORT SYSTEM

Filipinos need not go to Hong Kong or Singapore or London to experience the double-decker bus, just ride the Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) Point-to-Point (P2P) mass transport system (http://cnnphilippines.com/life/videos/2016/10/12/Government-launches-14-new-double-decker-P2P-buses.html). This space-saving vehicle can ferry almost as many passengers that two regular buses can. Besides cash, commuters can also use their BEEP cards for their fare, too. WOW!

The double-decker concept is “MOVING MORE PEOPLE IN LESS VEHICLES (on the road)” – we need to focus on similar

THE BALANGIGA BELLS: U.S. TROPHY FOR THE MASSACRE OF INNOCENT FILIPINO CIVILIANS?

The Balangiga Massacre DOES NOT refer to the legitimate ambush made by Filipino freedom fighters against the surprised U.S. Army company at Balangiga, Samar in Sept. 28, 1901. This raid resulted in the deaths of 48 and wounding of 22 American soldiers. The Balangiga Massacre is the ruthless butchering of unspecified number of innocent Filipino civilians as revenge killing for that valid ambush (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balangiga_massacre, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balangiga_bells).

The U.S. Army took the Balangiga Bells as war trophies after their men, on orders of Gen. Jacob H. Smith, massacred innocent Filipino civilian males aged 10 and older. Shame on Americans or anyone who may think that such an INGLORIOUS

THE ANATOMY OF U.S.-SPONSORED FAILED STATES: THE U.S. IS AT IT AGAIN IN THE CASE OF SYRIA

Iraq, Libya and now Syria – the U.S. brand of “democracy” obviously isn’t working for certain cultures and peoples so that is why these countries are now failed states or on their way to becoming one. Warlordism has become of Iraq and Libya but thanks to Russia, most of Syria hasn’t gone to that yet.

For a long time, Col. Muammar Khadafy ruled with an iron fist in Libya and so did Pres. Saddam Hussein over Iraq. There may have been ruthlessness and abuses committed, but each dictator held together their people as a nation. But as the world knows now, U.S.-style “democracy” may not be suitable for some cultures. In fact, in some cultures, benevolent dictatorships

MMDA’S NO-CONTACT TRAFFIC APPREHENSIONS: EFFECTIVE ROAD DISCIPLINARIAN

When Metro Manila Dev’t Authority (MMDA) announced the start of the No-Contact Traffic Apprehensions System (http://www.mmda.gov.ph/index.php/20-faq/2040-no-contact-traffic-apprehension-policy-11-things-you-need-to-know), I knew that a sustained and strict implementation of the system is good for motorists’ road discipline and for add’l gov’t revenue for our traffic system’s overdue upgrades. Now that Pres. Duterte aims to cut income and other taxes, the penalties collected from erring motorists is a timely and good source of funding to augment the “savings” that the previous administration left.

Expect this source of funding to be significant because of the countless violations that we see on the road, private and public vehicles alike. Of course, the no-contact apprehension may take some time because of the due process of sending notices,

PROTECTION FOR PHILIPPINE LAW ENFORCERS (AND THEIR FAMILIES) IS A MUST

Protective gear for our “in-the-line-of-fire” Philippine National Police (PNP) personnel should be given priority. Currently, only special units like the SWAT, NBI, PDEA, etc. don bulletproof vests, Kevlar helmets, advanced communications gear and other life-saving paraphernalia. My heart goes to heroes like PO1 Romeo Mandapat who paid the ultimate price in the line of duty. PO1 Mandapat may have had a chance against his drug-pusher killer if he had the proper gear. (http://balita.definitelyfilipino.com/tags/po1-romeo-mandapat/)

Our policemen and law enforcement agents who go out in the field to conduct raids, arrests, searches and other operations

P18.9 BILLION FOR FA-50 FIGHTER JETS FOR PAF: A WASTE OF MONEY

Pres. Duterte scored a bulls-eye in saying that the money spent for the 12 FA-50 jets purchased by the last administration could have been used to buy helicopters or boats that we can use for our internal security problems. For the amount, our Air Force could have gained more choppers and/or small, fast boats for our Coast Guard so that they can pursue terrorists and bandits over land or over sea.

In his speech before local mayors, he divulged that now the U.S. won’t even sell us ammunition for these fighters. What? Why did ex-Pres. Aquino get these very expensive but useless military hardware anyway if the U.S. can “yank our chain” and not

HPG DID A GREAT JOB TO END THE BALINTAWAK MARKET TRAFFIC CHAOS (BUT WHY HAVEN’T I SEEN THEM LATELY)?

Prior to ex-Pres. Aquino’s order for the PNP-Highway Patrol Group’s (HPG) to “fix” EDSA, Balintawak Market always caused a traffic buildup. Vendors occupy 1-lane, 1-lane is filled with patrons’ and suppliers’ vehicles, 1-lane has become the “terminal” of unfilled PUJs and yet another lane served as the “unloading/loading” area for other PUVs. This means that out of 5-lanes in that portion of EDSA, passing vehicles are left with only 1-lane to use.

And what’s exacerbating is that all of these are usually happening under the watchful eyes of MMDA Traffic Enforcers posted at the area. Makes anyone who emerges from the bottleneck and sees them to think that either these MMDA personnel are

HPG CLOSES U-TURN SLOT AT SM NORTH EDSA: THERE’S A BETTER SOLUTION THAN CLOSING IT

The U-Turn slot after West Ave. that previously served all vehicles going to SM North EDSA was closed in an effort by the HPG to help make traffic flow along EDSA smoother by diverting traffic to the much farther Quezon Ave. I think that motorists can bear the expense of the added distance if only to avoid a traffic buildup at the old U-Turn slot, but now the bottleneck is at Quezon Ave. and unless it affects the EDSA flow (their current mission) I fear that HPG doesn’t care.

As a motorist (and commuter) who frequents SM North EDSA coming from Monumento, I think that there’s a better solution to mitigate EDSA traffic buildup in the area and at the same time decongest the Quezon Ave. U-Turn slot:

Let private vehicles use the old U-Turn slot and let PUVs use the Quezon Ave. slot.

But it CAN’T be the other way around. Why? PUVs are the primary cause of the blockage - PUVs unloading at the outermost(rightmost) lane and PUVs emerging from West Ave. that “cross” EDSA in order to get to the old U-Turn slot. These practice by PUVs results to 4-5 out of the 6 lanes of EDSA getting blocked by PUVs trying to get to the old U-Turn slot.

THE NEW KFC SUNDAE: A PRODUCT OF FALSE ADVERTISING

The new KFC Sundae posters at KFC SM Annex North EDSA was so tempting that I tried it and I was shocked with the almost halved serving size. The crew, a Ms. Mocha, even reiterated that it was the correct serving size when I called her attention to it. Frustrated, I dutifully started filming and taking photos of the sundae and the KFC posters for Consumerword.

Only after noticing my actions did the branch officer approached me to apologize and offer to replace the item. She said that Ms. Mocha was new and didn’t realize that her serving was incorrect. Although she brought me a better serving, and I thanked

THE SLOWEST SPEED AVAILABLE, NOT THE FASTEST, SHOULD BE THE TRUE MEASURE FOR QUALITY OF INTERNET CONNECTIVITY

A Phil. Long Distance Tel. Co. (PLDT) executive was over the news boasting that a recent “research” showed that the Philippines has risen to the No. 12 among countries with high-speed internet connection (in Asia-Pacific). What is he talking about?   I knew for a fact that in Hong Kong and Singapore, as way back as several years ago, the slowest internet speeds start at 12-15mbps (megabits per sec.) and their fastest may be twice or many times that.

In the Philippines, however, where our telcos (telecommunications companies) are making so much money by providing multi-tiered internet packages – internet connection speeds start at an unbelievable slow speed of 375-750kbps (kilobits per sec.) or

RH LAW IS PRO-LIFE, PRO-POOR AND PRO-PROGRESS: FAMILY PLANNING IS A MUST FOR POVERTY ALLEVIATION

Why do the poorest have some of the largest families? Perhaps because they didn't know any better. Implementing the RH LAW of 2012 will result to informed choices and will greatly benefit this sector of Philippine society.

Over-population or high fertility rate is a common factor in underdeveloped or “developing” countries. In fact, all developed nations have low fertility rate that some have zero or negative population growth.

But in developed nations, too, there are significantly less practicing or devout Catholics. This is probably why the Philippines's Roman Catholic Church is holding us back – it wouldn’t allow government to implement an effective population control program and no president has been able to do this for fear of losing their flock’s vote. According to statistics, devoutness is prevalent

JANSPORT BACKPACK ZIPPERS GET STUCK A LOT

Jansport backpacks aren’t inexpensive teens’ school gear, but apparently they’re popular. That is why we’ve had at least 3 over the years for my teenage daughter. They’re the “in” thing in school since she was in her elementary school days. They’re sturdy, with a life-time warranty on service, but they have a problem – the zipper often gets stuck on the covering flap.

And after I searched the internet, I found out that other Jansport backpack owners have been experiencing the same problem. It is not an

SEN. MANNY PACQUIAO AND SEN. TITO SOTTO: WE SHOULD LISTEN TO WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY

I was able to catch a glimpse of the first day of the much talked about Senate hearing on the so-called Extra-Judicial Killings (EJK) and it is interesting to note the responses made by Sen. Tito Sotto and Sen. Manny Pacquiao. I must admit that maybe because they’re not lawyers or PhDs or the like I didn’t have high expectations.

Much to my surprise, the two Senators posed some of the most interesting (and sensible) questions. Sen. Tito Sotto asked a resource person whose husband and father-in-law got killed inside a police station, "What is the penalty for Kara Crus? Isn’t that a minor offense?

TRUCKS AND BUSES NOW AT ROXAS BLVD.: THEY’RE CAUSING HAVOC

I was sadly surprised to see huge container van trucks and buses along Roxas Blvd. the other night on my way to Malabon City from the Mall of Asia (MOA) in Pasay City. For several decades now, trucks and buses have been banned from much of Roxas Blvd. which makes the traffic congestion relatively easier.

Eventually I noticed a lane with the new marking “TRUCKS WITH TABS” that apparently runs the entire stretch of Roxas Blvd. now. The new administration may have been trying to replicate the Circumferential Road 5 (C5) model wherein trucks and buses can use one lane. In the C5 model, however, the single-lane use is strictly implemented – this is evident because a long line of trucks creates a “wall” along