MRT-3 roaches prompt DOTr probe of maintenance firm

Another day, another indignity on the country’s busiest railway.

A commuter opened their phone, filmed cockroaches scuttling across an MRT-3 train car, and posted it online. Within hours, the Department of Transportation ordered the railway’s maintenance provider to explain how pests ended up sharing the ride with passengers. Passengers who already endure breakdowns, delays, and carriages so packed that personal space becomes a distant memory.

The insect that finally got attention

The video surfaced this week, showing multiple cockroaches bold enough to ignore the rush-hour crowd. DOTr acted quickly following the public outcry: Acting Secretary Giovanni Lopez ordered an immediate fleet-wide inspection. MRT-3 General Manager Michael Capati issued a formal Notice to Explain to Sumitomo. They used the word “unacceptable,” which is the standard official response when a problem has clearly been ignored for far too long. But no one has explained how routine pest control—a basic requirement for any public facility—fell through the cracks for a system that moves nearly 400,000 people every day.

What ₱28 buys you now

The MRT-3 fare ranges from ₱13 to ₱28. For that price, commuters expect the usual: delays, technical glitches, and crowded platforms. Now, they are being asked to tolerate infestations. The timing is particularly stinging. On Tuesday, March 3, just 24 hours before the video went viral, the Department of Finance signed a ₱8.2 billion loan agreement with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). This “third tranche” of funding is meant to overhaul tracks, signaling, and station equipment.

While the government celebrates “world-class” investments, the average commuter is left wondering why a multi-billion peso budget can’t seem to cover a can of pesticide. For the office worker in Quezon City or the student in Makati, these aren’t abstract failures—they are the daily realities of an infrastructure they depend on because they have no other choice.

The contractor in the spotlight

The DOTr has made it clear: Sumitomo is the one holding the mop and the wrench. Maintenance contracts are awarded, billions in loans are secured, yet basic sanitation persists as an issue.

Kung tutuusin, pests in a train car are a symptom of deeper negligence. They suggest that cleaning schedules are being skipped and that the gap between high-level “modernization” and ground-level maintenance has grown wide enough for cockroaches to crawl through.

What happens next (probably)

As of today, Friday, March 6, the DOTr has ordered intensified disinfection across all train sets. Sumitomo will submit its explanation, likely citing isolated incidents or “external factors.” There may be a fine, and there will certainly be more press releases. But the real question isn’t whether the DOTr can extract an apology from a contractor. It’s whether the 400,000 daily commuters will ever receive the dignified service they are already paying for.

Editor’s Take

The cockroaches are doing what government inspectors should have done months ago: exposing maintenance failures that everyone involved hoped no one would notice. A commuter with a phone camera just accomplished more oversight than whatever monitoring system is supposedly in place. DOTr’s response—demanding explanations, promising inspections—sounds appropriately concerned, but concern is cheap when the problem is already crawling across your train car. What commuters need isn’t another investigation; it’s a system where basic pest control doesn’t require viral videos to happen. The bar is now so low that “no visible insects” counts as an achievement worth announcing.

Sources
MRT-3 maintenance provider told to explain presence of roaches in train — Inquirer
DOTr orders enhanced sanitation at MRT-3 – PNA
DOF inks ₱8.2-B loan for MRT-3 restoration – GMA News
MRT-3 inspects train after commuter posts about cockroaches — Philippine Star