An organization of public transport groups within malls in Metro Manila and nearby provinces on Wednesday threatened to stage a transport holiday on June 2, something that will affect about half-a-million passengers.
Mario Valbuena Jr., president of SM Malls Integrated Transport Terminals Federation Inc. or SMMITT, questioned the plan to impose a 100-percent increase in the monthly terminal fees for the parking lots within malls in Metro Manila, Cavite and Antipolo City.
He said they would go on a transport holiday right after their members had transported passengers from the pick-up points to the drop-off points early in the morning of June 2.
“We assure the passengers that we will resume operations to service them after office hours,” Valbuena told reporters.
Despite this, he said, many shoppers in the SM malls and other commuters would still have to bear the brunt of the transport holiday.
“We would like to let STSI feel our importance should it insist on removing us over our refusal to pay double for the terminal slots,” SMMITT spokesman Danilo Ocampo said.
“At least 500,000 commuters daily from terminal to terminal will be affected,” he said.
Robert Martin, Pasang Masda national president, said they were not against SM Prime Holdings, the company supervising all SM malls.
“We do not want to pick a fight with SM,” he said.
He appealed to SM Prime Holdings to step into the issue.
STSI is the manager of all public utility vehicles operating inside the SM malls nationwide.
Ocampo, the SMMITT representative at SM Megamall, said they had been paying STSI, represented by Wilbert Lee, Ben Lua and Anthony Hernandez, P1.4 million a month despite the absence of a contract.
“We have been talking to the SMMITT officers since 2015 just to have a contract with them, but to no avail,” he said.
“We have been operating for the past 20 years, two decades of harmonious relationship. The mall management has asked us to provide the shoppers and the public with a convenient mode of transportation.”
Ocampo asked if the SM Prime Holdings was aware of STSI’s plan to double the terminal fees.
A check with the Securities and Exchange Commission showed that STSI’s registration was approved only on Jan. 25.
“STSI has been collecting payments in Metro Manila amounting to P20 million a month,” Ocampo said.
“With the 100-percent hike in fees, not only the drivers and operators but also the 500,000 commuters of SM malls will have to suffer.”