AROUND 2,000 leaders and members of progressive groups marched the streets of Bacolod City Tuesday and trumpeted their grievances against the Duterte administration for not being sincere in his promises to protect and strengthen the security of tenure of the labor sector in the country.
Joining the Labor Day rally were Michael de la Concepcion, secretary-general of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) Negros; Iglesia Filipina Independiente Bishop Romeo Tagud of Promotion of Church People's Response (PCPR); Diego Malacad of United Drivers Operators Center (Undoc)-Pinagsamahan ng mga Tsuper at Operator Nationwide (Piston); Berlita Ante, Kalipunan ng Damayan Mahihirap (Damayan); Dolly Seledonio, Kilusang Mambubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP); John Milton Lozande, secretary-general of Unyon ng mga Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA); Mario Tan, National Federation of Sugar Workers (NFSW)-North; Rev. Fr. Chris Gonzales, head of Social Action Center of Diocese of Bacolod; and Rollando Nillo of National Federation of Sugar Workers and others.
While 150,000 workers nationwide were lambasting the President left and right during the observance of the 132nd International Labor Day Tuesday, May 1, Duterte got the right timing to appease the restive workers by signing the Executive Order (EO) to end the labor contractualization in the country.
But de la Concepcion was among those who doubted if the move of the President will indeed redound to the welfare of the workers as the Duterte has failed to consult with the labor sector before he signed the EO.
They suspect that this EO will still favor the employers rather than the employees.
What he signed did not go through a series of consultation, the progressive group leader said.
His initial understanding of the EO was that the legalization of the worker's employment will not emanate from the employer but rather the agency that hired him or her, he said.
They want to see that all forms of contractualization be fully eliminated in the country, he added.
De la Concepcion added the hypocrisy of the Duterte regime is evident in the recent issues involving the loss of jobs for the Filipinos here and abroad.
Duterte is pushing the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in Kuwait to return to the Philippines out of nationalism yet his Labor Day job fairs are driving more Filipino workers out of the country, he said.
He also destroyed 36,000 jobs with the closure of Boracay to pave the way for the Chinese investors. In the same vein, around 600,000 jeepney drivers are threatened to lose their source of livelihood with the phasing out of the aging jeepneys in the streets while handing over the monopoly of control of our public transport to foreign corporations, he stressed.
Further, de la Concepcion stressed there has been no real wage increase in the Duterte administration but instead a substantial price hike.
"Duterte gave us price hikes through the notorious Train Law. As a result, the gap between the current minimum wage levels and the estimated family living wage has grown even wider...we demand for the implementation of a national minimum wage of P750 per day per worker," he said.
He added: "This Labor Day, the unified workers vow to fight and defeat Duterte's tyranny and creeping dictatorship. Duterte's fascist tactics - his killing spree of unionists and labor rights advocates, the persecution of his political opponents and the criminalization and terrorist tagging of the workers' and peoples’ legitimate dissent must stop.
They also demanded the lifting of the martial law in Mindanao, which has led to gross labor and human rights violations in the region. "We will not allow Duterte to push through with the Charter Change that would allow him to establish his fascist dictatorship," de la Concepcion added.
Meanwhile, Iglesia Filipina Independiente Bishop Romeo Tagud said that the Duterte administration has a militarized orientation or utok polvora.
"Most of his solutions to the country's problem are always driven by military solution wherein the glaring example of a militarized government was the war in Marawi that led to the declaration of Martial Law in Mindanao, the Train Law is hitting everyone. The cost of gasoline and basic commodities are increasing which his administration does not know the real needs of the people. Our Church joins the call for the implementation of a national minimum wage of P750 per day per worker nationwide," he said.
The protesters burned an effigy of United States (US) President Donald Trump and Duterte for allegedly conniving on so many issues and policy that only led to the increase in the costs of fuel and basic commodities.
There is no end to these burdens because the Philippine Government is tied up with the US because of the country's indebtedness to the World Bank, the group said, adding they are behind all the increases in the country's commodities. Trump symbolizes imperialism in the country while Duterte serves as his puppet despite the fact that Duterte is also tied with China.