MANILA: The Department of Transportation (DOTr) on Tuesday reached out to public transport groups to discuss their concerns on the public utility vehicle (PUV) modernization program (PUVMP) with the hope of preventing a transport strike.
In an interview during on the sidelines of the Philippine Maritime Industry Summit 2023 at the Manila Hotel, DOTr Secretary Jaime Bautista said he recently talked with Mar Valbuena, chairperson of transport group Manibela, who earlier warned of a transport strike beginning March 6.
“Posibleng mag-usap kami uli para mapag-usapan natin kung ano man yung mga issues (It’s possible we’ll talk again later to discuss the issues), what needs to be corrected if there’s anything that we need to do,” Bautista said.
He clarified that the deadline set by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on June 30 is for jeepney drivers and operators to consolidate or join existing transport cooperatives.
“We will be able to help them more if they are part of the group. We can even help them borrow money to finance the acquisition of modern vehicles and we have programs with the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) and Landbank to extend loans to finance the acquisition of modern PUVs,” he said.
He said the deadline, announced through LTFRB Memorandum Circular 2023-013, may still be extended if necessary.
“Very flexible naman ang ating gobyerno, pakikinggan natin ang mga hinaing ng bawat stakeholder (Our government is very flexible, we’re going to listen to the concerns of every stakeholder),” he said.
While the DOTr is open to dialogue with the public transport sector, he said talks about scrapping the PUVMP are off the table.
“Pagbasura ng program natin ay siguro ay hindi naman tama. Kailangan i-modernize natin yung ating (Scrapping the program is probably not right. We need to modernize our) PUVs to be more convenient, accessible, safe and secure and affordable,” he said.
On Monday, Manibela announced its plan to hold a weeklong strike in Metro Manila starting March 6 to underscore their opposition to the PUVMP and the planned phaseout of traditional jeepneys and other non-compliant PUVs.
To date, the group said around 40,000 drivers of traditional jeepneys and UV Express units would join the strike, while talks with the group’s provincial members are ongoing regarding their participation
Source: Philippines News Agency