MANILA, Philippines — Several groups on Tuesday voiced their support for Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide’s (Piston) transport strike which is slated to begin on Thursday, December 14.
Piston will hold a strike to protest the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board’s (LTFRB) December 31 deadline for the application of franchise consolidation.
For Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), forcing operators to surrender their individual franchises will only worsen the situation of the country’s transportation sector.
“There is no compelling reason to impose the deadline for franchise consolidation as this will result in massive jobs displacement and a worsening of the mass transport crisis,” Bayan President Renato Reyes said in a statement.
This is consistent with Piston’s claim that approximately 80 percent of small-time operators may lose their jobs at the end of the year if the LTFRB does not remove its deadline for franchise consolidation.
Consolidation, one of the first steps in the government’s Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP), means that only one franchise held by a single cooperative or corporation will be permitted to operate on a specific route.
READ: Piston set to strike Thursday ahead of franchise consolidation deadline
“Franchise consolidation and the forming of cooperatives should always be voluntary and be based on concrete conditions, not on arbitrary deadlines,” Reyes noted.
Bayan echoed Piston’s worry that surrendering their franchise to a single entity would result in a transportation monopoly.
“The DoTr [Department of Transportation] is paving the way for the eventual corporate take-over of local transport operations. The single-franchise for routes will make it easier for transport monopolies to capture the local market,” Bayan’s president alleged.
“After January 1, established companies may come in as new franchise grantees to take over local routes since the previous PUJs [Public Utility Jeepneys] are no longer operating,” he added.
“We stand with drivers and operators in defense of their livelihood and we stand with all commuters in our common demand for a pro-people mass transport system,” Bayan’s statement continued.
For its part, Anakbayan called the PUVMP a “sham” and a “business scheme” of large companies who want to take over local transport routes.
“Once implemented along with the sham modernization forcing drivers and operators with overpriced foreign jeepneys, fares will rise up to P50 because our drivers and operators need to pay their debts incurred,” the group said in its statement.
Piston’s transport strike is initially scheduled to end on December 15, but the group’s national president Mody Floranda told INQUIRER.net that its duration would ultimately depend on whether or not the LTFRB would heed their calls.
On the other hand, transport groups under the United Transport Consolidated Entities of the Philippines expressed support for the full implementation of the PUVMP and enforcing the franchise consolidation deadline.
The DoTr stressed in previous statements and interviews that the PUVMP is an effort to make the transportation sector more efficient and sustainable.
Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista recently eased concerns in the transport sector regarding consolidation, citing feedback from operators who reported an increase in operational efficiency after consolidation, contrary to Piston’s claims.
READ: DOTr firm on December 31 deadline for franchise consolidation of PUVs