Dumaguete: Tricycle drivers here thanked President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for the government cash aid they received on Wednesday, aimed at improving their living conditions, severely affected by the Middle East conflict.

According to Philippines News Agency, some 3,000 tricycle (also known as pedicab here) drivers in this city alone were to receive PHP5,000 of cash relief assistance at a payout held at the gymnasium in Barangay Calindagan of this provincial capital. Spearheaded by the Department of Social Welfare and Development-Negros Island Region (DSWD-NIR), a simultaneous payout was held on the same day in five other cities in Negros Oriental and more than 10 cities in Negros Occidental.

Ronald Estrada, a member of the Piapi-Bantayan Motorcabs-for-Hire Operators and Drivers Association, said the cash assistance is a big help to him and his family as the fuel prices continue to soar, affecting his main livelihood. "We are thankful to the President for the PHP5,000 assistance that we will use to buy rice and other necessities, as we also have a one liter per day fuel subsidy from the city," Estrada said in Cebuano.

Jeffrey Dagpin, another tricycle driver, said financial aid significantly supports tricycle drivers and expressed hope that government assistance will continue, adding that the number of tricycle passengers has decreased since fuel prices began to rise. Dagpin said they continue to collect at least PHP15 from each passenger within the city, but they charge additional fees for longer distances. A proposal to raise the minimum fare for pedicabs in the city to PHP20 per passenger has not been officially approved. Dagpin rents a motorcab-for-hire (MCH) for PHP280 and earns a daily net income of PHP700.

Meanwhile, Elvin Cadano from the Metro Dumaguete Tricycle Drivers Association said he plans to use the cash aid to buy rice and gasoline for his own MCH. Cadano said he used to pay about PHP300 for gasoline each day, but now it has doubled to PHP600 as he also drives at night. "Back then, I used to earn more than PHP1,000 a day, but now the income has dropped to about PHP800," he said.

The DSWD-NIR has specified that only MCH drivers qualify for the cash assistance and not operators. The next round of cash relief assistance payouts for tricycle drivers across the municipalities will be on April 16.