By Rommel Lopez
“Surprise!”
This was the response of presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo when asked how President Rodrigo Duterte would be able to fulfill his promise of five-minute travel time on heavily congested EDSA from Cubao in Quezon City to Makati.
“Surprise! He has something [up] his sleeves,” Panelo said.
In a television interview with preacher Apollo Quiboloy on Saturday, Duterte said commuters need not worry on traffic and that he would deliver on his campaign promise of solving the EDSA gridlock.
“You don’t have to worry about traffic… Cubao and Makati will be about five minutes na lang. You just wait. Ayaw kong mag-ano (I don’t want to preempt it)—but things will improve… maybe God willing, December smooth sailing na,” he said.
Asked if the President was confident he would be able to get from the 18th Congress the emergency powers he needs to address the traffic situation, Panelo said he would personally ask the President about it.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson said Duterte should be “President for life” if he solves gargantuan problems like heavy traffic on EDSA.
“If PRRD (Duterte’s initials) delivers on just these two promises, (1) to cut travel time from Cubao to Makati to five minutes within six months and; (2) to eliminate flight delays in NAIA (airport) within one month, for being superhuman, he deserves to be President for life,” Lacson said in a text message sent to the Inquirer on Monday.