Jeepney fares, pan de sal price cut

The way prices of some commodities are dipping, it’s not only more fun in the Philippines, but cheaper too.

Starting today (Tuesday), the minimum jeepney fare has been reduced by 50 centavos to P8.00 in Luzon, and P7.50 in the Visayas and Mindanao. Watch out as well for the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) Diskwento Caravan, which will offer up to 50-percent discount on school supplies and hefty savings on basic goods.  Pan de sal will cost P23 or P1 less per pack of 10 starting May 29, while the cost of sardines might be cut by as much as P1.30 a can.

President Benigno Aquino III lauded the rollback of  jeepney fares and attributed the feat to the “cooperative” sector.

“There’s good news here and it still might change, so I was in a hurry to get here,” Aquino said in jest, drawing laughter from the audience at the national transport conference at Marikina Hotel.

“I salute what you’ve done in reverting the jeepney fare from P8.50 to P8. Without force, without the shoving, without the bickering, this came from your own initiative,” Aquino said in Filipino.

Aquino flew in from Davao City with Transportation Secretary Mar Roxas, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chair Francis Tolentino and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) Director General Joel Villanueva at the event organized by 1-Utak party-list group.

“You have the opposite of crab mentality  (utak-alimango) because you focus on the collective growth and welfare of the people,” Aquino told the party list and said that the government would find ways to cut the prices of spare parts and other drivers’ needs.

“Tiyak ko po, sa matitipid na pera’t extra income ng ating mga drayber, lalo kayong magiging sweet lover (I’m sure that with these savings and extra income, you, our drivers, will be sweet lovers even more),” Aquino said.

He said the government had also deployed “honesty teams” to watch out for the “kotong cops” (extortionists) and colorum vehicles.

LTFRB order

Following the biggest rollback in fuel prices by oil companies since the start of this year, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Monday signed an order recalling the 50-centavo adjustment in minimum jeepney fares granted in March.

In the same order, the LTFRB denied the consolidated petition of several transport groups for a permanent P2 increase in jeepney fares, saying that a substantial hike would be too much of a burden for passengers.

“The big-time rollback in the prices of diesel was implemented by some oil companies, which now brings diesel prices below P45 per liter, and [this rollback is] likely to continue in the weeks to come,” the LTFRB said in its decision.

At the start of the week, oil companies rolled back diesel and gasoline prices by P1.50 per liter and P1.65 per liter, respectively.

“Transport petitioners … manifested and announced in public that they will withdraw the petition for increase of fares in the event that prices of diesel shall be reduced to the P45 level,” the LTFRB said.

Meanwhile, the trade and industry department is eyeing a cut in the suggested retail price of canned sardines from the current P13 to P13.50 per

155-gram can to P12.80.

In a briefing Monday, Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo said the government was studying this move because the three-month fishing ban that started in December last year had been lifted on March 2.

Fishing ban

In a separate statement, Trade Undersecretary Zenaida C. Maglaya explained that the DTI had previously allowed “increases in the prices of some brands of canned sardines in the first quarter of this year when [manufacturers] reported the high cost of fish due to the fishing ban in Mindanao.”

The government had imposed the ban in areas covering the East Sulu Sea, Basilan Strait and Sibuguey Bay in December to allow the spawning of tamban—the fish variety primarily used in the manufacture of canned and bottled sardines—and thwart the decline of the sardine species. The lower volume of available tamban, however, led to a

10.8-percent increase in the price of the fish and subsequently, of canned sardines, according to the DTI.

Also starting today, the DTI’s flagship project Diskwento Caravan is set to go around key cities across the country to offer consumers deeply discounted prices on school supplies and basic goods.

In a statement issued Monday, the DTI said the one-day sale, dubbed as “Diskwento Caravan: Balik Eskwela” edition, would ease the burden of rising prices of a variety of products, including school supplies, school uniforms, children’s shoes and school bags, canned goods, processed meat, bread, cooking oil and detergent soap. Local products made by micro, small and medium entrepreneurs will also be featured.

Joining the Diskwento Caravan to offer frontline services are the Tesda, National Statistics Office, National Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Internal Revenue and Social Security System.

Several caravans will be held across the country on separate dates until the end of May.

The trade secretary also announced that Pinoy Pan de Sal would cost P1 less per 10-piece pack weighing 250 grams.

“The cost of flour has gone down so the good news is that the cost of Pinoy Pan de Sal has gone down to P23 per pack. Two months ago it was P25,” Domingo said.

In a separate briefing Monday, Philippine Baking Industry Group (PhilBaking) director Walter Co said the price reduction would take effect by May 29 this year. He, however, noted that the slash in flour prices was borne out of “goodwill” on their part, and is meant to urge local flour millers to bring down the cost of flour. Doing so would allow PhilBaking members to also reduce the price of Pinoy Tasty and possibly, trigger price cuts among other commercial loaf bread variants.

Indonesian vs local flour

Co said the cost of Indonesian flour being used for Pinoy Pan de Sal was much lower at P840 per 25-kilogram bag, compared to the P870 to P930 cost per bag of local flour. Pinoy Tasty uses 100-percent locally milled flour, which is more expensive.

But Co added that they could not use Indonesian flour for the loaf bread as this gives the bread a yellowish color. Local flour gives loaf bread that whitish tinge.

The petitioners that filed for the increase in jeepney fares were the Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines, Alliance of Transport Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines, Liga ng mga Tsuper sa Pilipinas Inc., Alliance of Concerned Transport Organization and Pangkalahatang Sangguniang Metro Manila and Suburb Association.

LTFRB board member Manuel Iway said fares may be hiked back to P8.50 per passenger if diesel prices climb to around P48 per liter.

National Council for Commuters Protection president Elvira Medina welcomed the fare reduction, saying this would help the millions of Filipino students going back to school this June. She also praised the LTFRB for acting fast on recalling the fare hike following the drop in fuel prices.

Domingo said that the DTI is now working closely with the Department of Agriculture to check the country’s fish supply. The cost of fish makes up

40 percent to 60 percent of the production cost of canned sardines.

Some groups, however, are recommending a more thorough scientific study on the spawning behavior of tamban instead of a fishing ban.  The study was supposedly meant to ensure that future fishing bans would accurately fall on the peak spawning months, and that the fishing industry would get the most out of upcoming conservation measures.

The Zamboanga Peninsula is considered as the country’s sardine capital. The fishing, canning and other allied industries employ up to 35,000 people in the region.

The 12 canneries based in Zamboanga City alone supply about 80 percent of the country’s demand for canned sardines.  Dipolog City has become known for pioneering the processing of tamban into Spanish-style bottled sardines. With a report by Niña Calleja