‘Body-shamed’ passenger files complaint vs jeepney driver, owners

Inquirer file photo

MANILA, Philippines — The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) issued a show cause order on Tuesday against the driver and owners of a modern jeepney after a female passenger complained that she was body-shamed and forced to get off the vehicle in Parañaque City on June 7.

The order, dated June 10 and signed by LTFRB lawyer Sherwin Vizconde, also directed the unidentified jeepney driver, the vehicle’s registered owners Flora Magtibay, Romeo Guerrero and Double A Transport Corp., to attend a hearing on June 14 at the transport board’s main office in Quezon City.

READ: Body image issues and mental health

The respondents were accused of administrative offenses, particularly employing a discourteous driver, failure to convey passengers and violation of safe spaces, as penalized under LTFRB’s Memorandum Circular No. 2023-016.

The 29-year-old complainant, Joysh Gutierrez, recounted her ordeal in a post on Facebook, which has since become viral.

Gutierrez said that she and a co-worker got on a Baclaran-bound jeepney with license plate NWJ 221 at a passenger stop in Multinational Village along Dr. A Santos Avenue. However, the driver and his wife, who was also on board, told her to alight from the vehicle because she was chubby, saying that the vehicle might suffer a flat tire.

According to Gutierrez, she vehemently protested being discriminated against and even offered to pay a higher fare. The other passengers came to her defense, but she said the jeepney driver and his wife continued to shame and insult her. The driver also deliberately slowed down the vehicle in an apparent attempt to mock her weight.

In an interview over radio station dwPM, Gutierrez said she was traumatized by her experience, adding that she would always remember it whenever she got on a jeepney. She also said that she was determined to pursue charges against the respondents. In a TV interview, Gutierrez added that while she was used to being bullied over her weight, what the jeepney driver did was far worse than she had experienced before.