ILOILO City – What was originally approved was a P2.50 increase in the P6.50 minimum fare for passenger jeepneys in this city and Iloilo province.
But this was slashed to P2 upon the recommendation of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), according to the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).
Thus from what was previously reported – P9 as new minimum fare – the Board’s final decision for the new minimum fare was P8.50, said LTFRB Region 6 director Richard Osmeña yesterday.
The P2 increase was for the first four kilometers, said Osmeña, and this was the only increase the Board approved.
There would be no rate increase in the succeeding kilometers, he stressed.
Osmeña also said the resolution for fare increase had already been signed and would be enforced after this is published next week in a newspaper of general circulation.
“The implementation would most likely start by the second week (of August),” he said.
According to the director, the LTFRB central office took into consideration NEDA’s recommendation.
The fare hike petitioners were the Iloilo City Loop Alliance of Jeepney Owners and Drivers Association (ICLAJODA), Iloilo City Alliance of Drivers Association (ICADA) and the Confederation of Iloilo Provincial Jeepney Owners and Drivers and Association (CIPJODA).
They actually asked for a P5.50 fare increase but LTFRB Region 6 recommended only P2.50 to its central office.
The groups have been wondering when the fare increase would be enforced more than a month after having been informed that their petition was approved.
“Ang aton mga drivers atat na atat na kay ti tama kataas ang inflation,” said ICLAJODA president Raymundo Parcon.
In seeking a fare increase, the petitioners cited the effects of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law’s additional excise tax on petroleum products, basic commodities and vehicle spare parts.
LTFRB must issue a new fare matrix for the new fare increase to take effect, said Parcon.
Without it, jeepney drivers enforcing the new rate could be accused of overcharging, he warned.
During a public hearing on the fare hike petition, the human rights alliance Karapatan Panay pressed for an increase of P2.50. The Panay Consumers’ Alliance (PCA), on the other hand, said P3.50 would be “reasonable.”
“This year, our drivers’ sector and various sectors of farmers, workers, urban poor, women, and youth and students, among others, have felt the tremendous impact of the Duterte administration’s TRAIN,” a statement from PCA read.
The increase in excise tax, it said, “resulted to the increase in the prices of basic commodities and services.”
But while PCA stressed it was cognizant of the drivers’ plight, “to pass on the burden to the riding public…is not the solution.”
“This solution will only aggravate the dire situation of our farmers and workers (minimum wage earners), and sectors of students and professionals who are reliant to mass transportation,” PCA stressed.
The group urged the government to review its policies with regards the oil industry and mass transportation system.
“It is evident that the Oil Deregulation Law, the Expanded Value-Added Tax Law and the TRAIN Law are the main culprits of the unregulated increases in petroleum products,” PCA stressed.
It proposed the scrapping of these laws and the nationalization of the oil industry./PN
