Napulan backs call for DOH probe on safety of LPG taxi
Gnawing concerns on the safety of taxi units converted to Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) – use must indeed be looked into by no less than the Department of Health (DOH).
As such, call for DOH investigation got a backing from Iloilo First District Board Member Macario Napulan who himself wanted to be clarified on the safety-issue.
A doctor by profession and chairman of the Committee on Health, Board Member Napulan acknowledged the harmful effects of any LPG leak saying those at greater risks are persons with existing respiratory illnesses.
In an interview, Napulan told The News Today (TNT) that wider probe must be done if only to ensure the road-worthiness of LPG-taxi units.
While all taxis are city-based, Napulan expressed added concern on provincial-bound passengers with the longer drive entailed here. If the leaks are true as feared, Napulan said it meant more danger with longer exposure.
"The investigation by the DOH is really needed," he stressed.
Bombo Radyo Iloilo in a public forum Friday gathered LPG proponents from the government and private sectors. Director Porferio Clavel of the Land Transportation and Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said a public dialogue is welcome if only to get full clarification on the LPG issue.
This, as Director Clavel acknowledges that the assistance of other government agencies such as the Department of Health is important. Important, he said, to check on the veracity of the fears linking the taxi drivers' deaths to LPG taxi units driven.
"Tani agencies concerned should also do their own share as to allegations of stakeholders like the drivers. The same should be validated and addressed," Director Clavel said in a phone interview yesterday. It was Clavel who made the personal request over Bombo Radyo to issue a similar invite to other government agencies.
DOH's Dr. Elvie Villalobos told Bombo Radyo Monday evening that the two deaths of taxi drivers as per the department's initial validation had nothing to do with the LPG taxi units driven.
Director Clavel wants to see similar action from other agencies such as the Department of Trade and Industry "on safety requirements of the gadgets used."
"By and large, all government agencies must be involved and should work hand in hand to validate all these. As far as the LTFRB is concerned, it is incumbent on us to implement the LPG conversion with the government's objective for cleaner air and LPG is environment- friendly," Director Clavel added.
No formal complaints have reached the LTFRB on the LPG taxi issue with the fears linking the taxi drivers' deaths considered by the Director as "unfounded."
An assurance for DOH action was made by Dr. Andres Dollar when reached for comment yesterday by TNT.
The issue cropped up after majority of taxi drivers interviewed by Bombo Radyo expressed similar fears and concerns on the purported gas leaks. Complaints of dizziness, persistent dry cough and dryness of throat were some the most common among the group randomly interviewed.
LPG proponents though assured of the taxi units' road-worthiness saying the fears as expressed lack any solid basis.
Yet true or not, Board Member Napulan said it is best to be fully clarified if only to erase the misconceptions and establish the veracity of the concerns.