BY GEROME DALIPE IV
ILOILO City – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. caved into public clamor to extend the consolidation period for another three months until April 30, 2024.
The extension is supposed to accommodate individual operators to either join or form their transport cooperatives to achieve one of the components of the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP).
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) in Region 6 reported about a 70 percent consolidation rate in the region.
But LTFRB-6 could have easily achieved a 100 percent consolidation rate had it not protected the business interest of existing big transport cooperatives and corporations in the region, said Junjun Asis, secretary-general of Sentrong Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators (SSTONE).
Interviewed over the phone, Asis said his group, which is composed of 1,512 traditional jeepney operators, has signified their intention to consolidate for viable routes in Bacolod City.
However, he said LTFRB-6 rejected it, saying the Bacolod City Government already approved an ordinance for the implementation of its Local Public Transport Route Plan (LPTRP).
Asis argued that the regional board’s act in prohibiting them from selecting viable routes ran in contrast to their new consolidation rules.
Lawyer Salvador Altura, Jr., LTFRB-6 hearing officer, denied Asis’ claim of favoritism in the consolidation process.
In a statement, Altura said the consolidation of routes is allowed only in areas with no route plan.
“Bacolod has an LPTRP and is implemented with all routes already awarded. The call for consolidation was made a long time ago and open to all who wish to join the PUVMP,” said Altura.
He said the operators were given the freedom to form their coops or corporations or join existing ones.
“There had been fence-sitters for so long, taking their sweet time deciding whether to join PUVMP, or not. Maybe the group of Junjun Asis is one of those,” said Altura.
“No favoritism was given to any particular coop/corp. If these were awarded routes in the Bacolod LPTRP it is because they were qualified under the guidelines,” the lawyer added.
Likewise, Altura said the LTFRB regional offices are implementing arms of policies formulated by the Board.
“If MC (Memorandum Circular) 2024-01 is perceived as favoring established coops or corporations, it is because they obtained vested interests in the program that need protection. Also, there were no big coops or corporations at the start of the consolidation process. These became big because they succeeded in persuading more to join their ranks,” he said.
The LTFRB issued MC 2024-00 dated Jan. 31, 2024, which pertains to the guidelines on industry consolidation.
The circular states that the LTFRB is allowing unconsolidated individual operators to ply their regular routes until April 30, 2024.
Although they are allowed to ply their routes, the LTFRB said the registration of the traditional jeepneys must be updated and with valid passenger accident insurance.
This means that the confirmation of unconsolidated units of individual operators may also be allowed until April 30.
Likewise, the consolidation for routes covered by the route plan is allowed only on existing rationalized routes with no consolidated transport cooperative as of Dec. 31, 2023.
Likewise, consolidation of units for routes that are not yet covered by the route plan shall not be allowed if the number of unconsolidated units is below 40 percent of the total number of authorized units.
The only remedy for the unconsolidated individual operators is to join the existing transport cooperative on such a route.
In addition, the board will now allow individual operators whose application for consolidation was limited to 15 units only to form or join the existing transport cooperatives for routes that are overlapping.
In addition, individual operators may withdraw their membership without from endorsement Office of Transport Cooperatives (OTC) provided their cooperative’s application for consolidation is still pending with
Based on the above circular, Asis said it appears the LTFRB-6 is violating its guidelines by prohibiting small transport cooperatives from consolidating on more viable routes.
“If they are not protecting those big coops and corporations, they should have accepted our application to consolidate in those routes. They are protecting the interests of these big corporations,” Asis told Panay News in Hiligaynon.
Traditional jeepney operators allied with SSTONE are presently plying city-bound routes in Bacolod City.
Asis also said his group held several dialogues with Bacolod City’s Councilor Al Victor Espino and Mayor Albee Benitez, who reportedly assured the traditional jeepney operators to amend certain provisions in the city’s ordinance on route plan.
Most of the traditional jeepney operators in Bacolod are cautiously observing the developments in the consolidation status due to the uncertainty in the decision of the Department of Transportation and the Marcos administration.
“We are just readying our documents to be filed before the April 30 extension period expires. But as of now, we are on a “wait and see” approach. We are confident that Mayor Benitez and our city officials will heed our clamor. We just cannot rely on those running the LTFRB in Region 6,” said Asis.
The government has been extending the deadline for the consolidation of PUV for the fifth time since 2022 supposedly to give more time to those drivers and operators who did not meet the deadline to consolidate.
This means that unconsolidated jeepneys and even UV Express nationwide may still be allowed to ply their usual routes until April 30.
The consolidation process is among the 10 components of the modernization program. Through consolidation, the LTFRB stressed that PUV units will be allocated equally to rationalized routes to prevent competition among drivers over the same route.
Launched in June 2018, the PUVMP is the flagship, non-infrastructure project of former President Rodrigo Duterte. It seeks to phase out PUVs aged 15 years or older.
The program promises a “comfortable, safe, reliable, convenient, affordable and environmentally sustainable” public transportation system in the country.
But several transport and cause-oriented groups decried the program as “anti-poor,” arguing that the new jeepney unit would cost them roughly P2.4 million per unit.
They also lamented that only multi-million peso companies can afford to buy the new “fleet management system” that sets a minimum of 15 units per franchise.
The transport leaders also claimed that some components of the program are disadvantageous to the transport cooperatives such as forcing the cooperative to avail of the modern units./PN
