ILOILO City – The Panay and Guimaras Alliance of Transport for Rehabilitation called for the scrapping of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law and the Oil Deregulation Law.
It blamed these laws for the constant spike in the prices of petroleum products.
According to Edgar Salarda, coordinator of the Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston) Panay and part of the alliance, “the Oil Deregulation Law, TRAIN Law and the 12 percent value-added tax are the roots of the increases in the prices of all goods.”
The TRAIN Law sets yearly increments in the excise tax on oil and fuel products until 2020. For diesel, it is P2.50 per liter this 2018, P4.50 per liter in 2019, and P6 per liter in 2020.
For regular and unleaded premium gasoline, in excise tax increment is P7 per liter this 2018, P9 per liter in 2019, and P10 per liter in 2020.
The Panay and Guimaras Alliance of Transport for Rehabilitation offered an alternative solution – “nationalization” of the oil industry, instead of letting private businesses to handle it, the government itself controls the industry.
Salarda said the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board’s (LTFRB) approval of the jeepney fare in Iloilo – from a minimum of P6.50 to P9 – is not enough since the price of petroleum increased from P34 to P42.
The call of the Panay and Guimaras Alliance of Transport for Rehabilitation has been echoed by the Panay Consumers’ Alliance (PCA).
“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 (fare increase) 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
