NewsWhore
05-17-2007, 02:40 PM
Journalist Huchi Lora says that Santo Domingo metro office director, Diandino Pena's appearance on his El Dia TV talk show does not satisfy the requirement for Pena and his office to comply with his request for information about the metro plans and studies. Lora, acting under the rights conferred by the Public Access Information Law, requested these documents, and a court ruled that Pena should comply. Pena has not yet complied, on the grounds of national security, and going on to say that the studies do not exist. Pena appeared on Lora's show on Tuesday, but as reported in El Dia newspaper, Lora says that he contradicted himself. Lora said that following Pena's appearance on the show, more contradictions have emerged in the motivations for failing to deliver the studies that back the metro construction. On the show, Diandino said that OPRET did not carry out the requested studies because "those were not necessary, but others, of a more scientific nature, were."
Lora said that Pena had also contradicted himself when he assured that the Ministry of Public Works did not have the legal authority to approve the metro plans, which he said is contrary to the ministry's own ruling, which was approved when Pena himself was Public Works minister.
Lora said he would wait for the Supreme Court of Justice to rule on the revocation requested by the Office for the Reorganization of Transport (OPRET), or whether they would uphold the ruling issued by the court that favors Lora's request for plans and studies, as per Law 200-04 on Public Information access.
Lora said that Pena should have admitted from the start that the studies had not been carried out if they considered them unnecessary.
Lora said that his main motivation is not the metro, but for the government to respect the rights of all citizens, and especially journalists, to access information on any aspect of handling of public affairs, that establishes government officials' obligation to provide the information that citizens request," he explained.
The first line of the metro is expected to be the most expensive public works project ever built in the DR. The OPRET director estimated that it would not cost more than US$700 million, and added that Congress has already approved loans for equipment totaling EUR$233.5 million.
Geologist Osiris de Leon has maintained that the accelerated pace of construction and the lack of appropriate studies has led to major improvisations during the construction process, increasing the cost, and posing a threat to the security of edifices along the way, and possibly to metro users themselves.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#6)
Lora said that Pena had also contradicted himself when he assured that the Ministry of Public Works did not have the legal authority to approve the metro plans, which he said is contrary to the ministry's own ruling, which was approved when Pena himself was Public Works minister.
Lora said he would wait for the Supreme Court of Justice to rule on the revocation requested by the Office for the Reorganization of Transport (OPRET), or whether they would uphold the ruling issued by the court that favors Lora's request for plans and studies, as per Law 200-04 on Public Information access.
Lora said that Pena should have admitted from the start that the studies had not been carried out if they considered them unnecessary.
Lora said that his main motivation is not the metro, but for the government to respect the rights of all citizens, and especially journalists, to access information on any aspect of handling of public affairs, that establishes government officials' obligation to provide the information that citizens request," he explained.
The first line of the metro is expected to be the most expensive public works project ever built in the DR. The OPRET director estimated that it would not cost more than US$700 million, and added that Congress has already approved loans for equipment totaling EUR$233.5 million.
Geologist Osiris de Leon has maintained that the accelerated pace of construction and the lack of appropriate studies has led to major improvisations during the construction process, increasing the cost, and posing a threat to the security of edifices along the way, and possibly to metro users themselves.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#6)