MRT to gobble up limited gov't funds - Honasan

Sen. Gregorio Honasan III expressed fears yesterday that the Metro Rail Transit would be tantamount to a blackhole "that would be swallowing up the limited government funds."

He urged President Estrada and his legal advisers to review the government contract with Metrostar so the government would be freed from any financial responsibility should the MRT be a losing proposition.

"We have heard that the MRT contract assures the profit of the private companies that put up Metrostar. That means the government is required to shell out funds if Metrostar is not making money," Honasan said.

He argued that the build-operate-transfer scheme has been devised precisely to free the government from the responsibility of releasing funds for public projects. The scheme allows the private sector to construct structures such as the MRT and just turn it over to the government 25 to 50 years later.

"In an era of privatization and deregulation, we find it surprising that the government is working to assure the profits of a private consortium when we should be allowing these private corporations to determine the fate of their business," Honasan said.

He warned that the MRT might turn out to be another white elephant, considering that few passengers are taking the Metrostar.

He explained that a review of the Metrostar contract would not discourage foreign investors, nor would it indicate any shift in the economic policies of the Estrada administration.

"We will simply be sending a strong signal to the private sector that it better get into legitimate contracts, or else the deal could be declared invalid," Honasan added.