MANILA, Philippines — At least 5,000 jeepney drivers and operators are expected to join in the transport strike set this week, transport group PISTON said Monday.
The transport strike is set from August 14 to 16.
In a Pandesal Forum, PISTON National President Mody Floranda said that the group will hold President Marcos Jr. accountable for his refusal to suspend the Public Transport Modernization Program, despite Senate Resolution 1096 urging the temporary halting of its implementation due to concerns about its unplanned and rushed rollout.
Aside from the NCR strike, Floranda said that drivers and operators in Iloilo, Baguio City, and some areas in Mindanao would hold separate protests in light of the jeepney modernization program.
In a separate press conference, the transport group Manibela announced that they would stage a transport strike on the specified dates. They warned that if no clear directive is issued by President Marcos and the concerned transportation agencies regarding the program, they will proceed with the strike.
Marcos turned down the call saying the program is not “rushed” adding that those who have been objecting and asking for suspension are in the “minority.”
“Marcos mentioned that the implementation has already been postponed seven times, this only implies that there are indeed issues, which he is trying to conceal,” said Jerome Adonis, Secretary General of Kilusang Mayo Uno during the press briefing.
The president said that a minority of jeepney drivers should not determine the outcome of the issue, pointing out that 80 percent of jeepney driver franchises have already been consolidated.
Jeepney drivers Mary Grace Duldulao and Allan Figueroa likewise slammed Marcos during the briefing for not suspending the modernization program, saying that this will only leave them “begging for alms” just like what happened during the COVID-19 pandemic when they were barred from operating due to the virus.
“PISTON urges all workers, the commuting public, and all affected people to mount militant and other forms of protests to press for a progressive, nationalist, and pro-people public transport and to reject and overthrow the corporate-driven and foreign-oriented PTMP of the Marcos Jr regime,” Floranda said.
The modernization program was initially launched in 2017, but various challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, led the government to temporarily suspend the modernization of public utility vehicles (PUVs).
Around 600,000 jeepney drivers are at risk of losing their jobs once the program is fully implemented.
The cost of a modern jeepney unit exceeds P2 million, a price considered too steep by state-run banks, LandBank, and the Development Bank of the Philippines, for PUV drivers and operators.
According to the Department of Transportation, as of May, approximately 81.11 percent of PUV units—155,513 out of 191,730—have been consolidated, leaving 36,217 units still unconsolidated.
