Transport groups on Monday announced they will hold a week-long transport holiday in the National Capital Region and Region 3 from March 6 to 12 to protest the government’s Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) Modernization Program.
Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista immediately appealed to transport groups to hold a dialog first with concerned officials before holding the strike.
“You know, we should seriously think about stopping operations. There should be a dialogue first,” Bautista said in a statement.
“Let’s understand what the issues are because we might just be misunderstanding each other. I think the problem is that the DOTr had no representative during the discussions to clarify the issues,” he added.
The PUV modernization program aims to replace traditional jeepneys with vehicles powered by more environment-friendly fuels.
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board said the franchise of most traditional jeepneys will expire on June 30.
Operators and drivers can apply for new franchises but as part of transport cooperatives.
Bautista said he has directed the Undersecretary for Road Sector to coordinate with the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) and with the PUV operators.
He said the government is “giving ample time to transport groups to muster enough funds to buy new units for their operations in line with the government’s PUV modernization program.”
“In areas where we know the drivers would have a hard time getting new equipment, we will give them a chance to join cooperatives that can assist them,”
Meanwhile, Albay Rep. Joey Salceda urged the Marcos administration to “expedite the cooperativization and provide subsidies” for the PUV modernization program of the government.
Salceda, chair of the House committee on ways and means, made the call as some 50,000 traditional PUJs have not yet been consolidated and may lose their franchises.
“Totally, I oppose it without the government providing concrete assistance to help PUJs cooperativize or to provide ample seed funding for their cooperatives,” Salceda said.
“Even the end-2023 extension is not enough,” he added.
Salceda said he will file a resolution directing the House Committee on Transportation to call for the suspension of the memorandum circular.
“I think the policy is especially cruel and inhumane when there are no longer any PUJ subsidies in the budget. Cruel and inhumane when you consider that jeepney drivers were among the hardest-hit sectors over the past three years.”