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[av_heading heading=’2-DAY JEEPNEY STRIKE LOOMS’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
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ILOILO City – Transport groups in Western Visayas are preparing for a two-day regionwide strike this month.
It will be another protest against the transport modernization program of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) which includes phasing out jeepneys 15 years old and older.
This time, jeepney drivers and operators aim to make their protest massive and crippling, according to Raymundo Parcon, president of the Iloilo City Loop Alliance of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association (ICLAJODA).
Parcon declined to reveal the dates of the transport strike for the time being but said the decision to hold such was finalized during a recent meeting of various transport groups following the visit of LTFRB chairman Martin Delgra.
“We would like our government to hear us. We are against this transport modernization program,” said Parcon in Hiligaynon.
This would be the second strike of Western Visayas’ jeepney drivers and operators in three months. They joined a nationwide strike just this Feb. 27 against the jeepney phaseout.
The jeepney started as remodeled army vehicles left behind by US forces after World War II, and became a showcase of Filipino ingenuity and resourcefulness. Mainly patronized by low- to middle-income passengers, it has become the core of Philippine public transport.
Parcon said the phaseout will displace over “20,000” public utility jeepneys in the region.
During his visit here, Delgra said LTFRB planned to kick off the transport modernization program by June 1.
“Many jeepney operators and drivers, and their families, will go hungry. This is why we are against this government plan,” said Parcon.
Under the transport modernization plan, jeepney operators will reportedly be forced to buy brand new units only from manufacturers accredited by the Land Transportation Office.
“This arrangement smacks of opportunism and greed in the guise of transport modernization. The plan is clearly about making money,” said Edgar Salarda, president of the Pinag-isang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide – Panay chapter.
If Piston Panay were to be believed, jeepney drivers and operators will also be required to use an “automatic fare collection system” and expensive Global Positioning System.
“Over half of passenger jeepneys will disappear from the roads if this plan pushes through,” warned Salarda.
Parcon blasted the reason being cited for the phaseout – air pollution caused by jeepneys.
“Why single us out? There are many other entities billowing smoke and causing air pollution such as factories and power plants,” said Parcon.
He also reminded LTFRB that jeepneys are required to undergo and pass smoke emission tests before their registrations are renewed.
If the government really wanted to reduce air pollution, said Salarda, there is an alternative to phasing out old jeepneys – requiring operators to overhaul their engines and closely monitor if this is being complied.
Even jeepney mechanics will be dislocated by the phaseout, said Salarda.
The transport strike will be participated by ICLAJODA, Pinag-isang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide – Panay chapter, Confederation of Iloilo Jeepney Owners and Drivers Association, Iloilo City Alliance of Drivers Association, tricycle drivers’ and operators’ associations, van and bus transport groups, transport groups in Bacolod City (Negros Occidental), Roxas City (Capiz, Kalibo (Aklan), and Antique, said Parcon.
The Feb. 27 transport strike of passenger jeepneys forced the Iloilo City government to suspend classes in public and private schools in all levels. Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog cited “general welfare and public interest” in ordering the class suspension.
A day after the strike, LTFRB Region 6 threatened to issue show-cause orders to jeepney operators and drivers who participated. The strike violated their franchises, it said.
It was unclear if the regional office made good on its threat.
“Each franchise issued is accompanied with the terms and conditions that the jeepney operators should comply. Also attached to the franchise is Memorandum Order 2011-004 stating that they must not initiate a strike or there must be no cessation of service with respect to any government action or decision,” said then LTFRB-6 legal counsel Atty. Jose Marie Lamparero./PN
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