JEEPNEY operators and drivers led by the Pinagkaisahang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (PISTON) claimed Monday that their transport strike had succeeded, with 90 percent of the estimated 300,000 public utility (PU) vehicles nationwide joining the strike.
They said 92 percent of the 60,000 jeepneys in Metro Manila did not run their routes. PISTON officials said the strike was successful in Nueva Vizcaya, Bulacan, Butuan City, and Cavite (100%), in Pampanga (98%), Laguna, Davao, Rizal, and Albay (95%), Camarines Sur (90%), Masbate (80%), Baguio City (75%), Surigao City (60%), and Cebu City (50%).
But the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said the strike had minimal effect. “Only .011 percent of 10 million commuters were affected,” the MMDA said. The Land Transportation and Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said here were only 20 to 50 protesters each in Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Zamboanga Peninsula, and Socsksargen.
And the government provided trucks and other vehicles to ferry any stranded passengers.
From their claims – which, incidentally, are so far apart – both sides seem to be judging the success of the transport strike by the inconvenience it caused the riding public. The real purpose of the demonstration, we believe, was to appeal to the government to restudy its “Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP) which would replace jeepneys 15 years old and above with new vehicles powered by less polluting engines and equipped with such amenities as CCTV cameras, automatic fare collection systems, dashboard cams, and wi-fi.
PISTON officials said on the first day of the transport strike that they are seeking a dialogue with President Duterte on their concern that the modernization plan would displace many drivers and operators. The program as it has been devised is too costly, they said. Small operators will not be able to carry on and earn enough to repay the loans they need to acquire the new units. The government should not modernize public transport in favor of large companies and monopolies which will be providing the new units to replace the old jeepneys, they added.
If they can get to meet with President Duterte and get him and Secretary Arthur Tugade of the Department of Transportation (DoTr) to review the plan, that would be success enough for the transport strike. If they can get the government to grant a little more assistance on funding and relief from such unnecessary requirements as CCTV cameras and wi-fi, that would be most welcome to the operators and drivers.