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Saturday, January 14, 2006
Roperos: After the feast
By Godofredo M. Roperos
Politics Also
Day after tomorrow, when the Cebuanos will have once again come face to face with the realities of their economic circumstances, there may emerge some post-Sinulog questions and issues. There would be critiques of the outcome of the festivities, as had happened before.
But really, that should not be a serious worry. What would be is the return to the basics.
What does it mean? Well, fiestas like the Feast of Santo Nino, are heady events.
To some, it is like an opiate, making one forget everything that tend to worry or sour up one’s outlook, like the Garci tapes, the jueteng payola imbroglio, etc.
But among the ranks of family men and daily wage earners, it would be back to the daily grind. And here lies the rub.
With the current national condition being as glum and “futureless” as it is, the uncertainty and unease of the people are slowly showing up in various ways.
Recently, it is reflected in the rising prices of basic commodities that are making housewives frown as they go over the items they exchange for the cash in their purse.
The past few weeks, every time I take a taxi, I always ask the driver about how he was taking the high price of gasoline. At the moment, each time the prices of gasoline goes up, the taxi driver’s daily share of his efforts, goes down.
But one said that it does matter really if the flag down is increased since the taxi operators would also increase the daily rental of the unit. In a sense, regardless of what the economic situation would be, taxi and jeepney drivers would always be on the receiving end.
Operators, or at least some of them, do not seem to hold any compassion for their drivers. In fact, some drivers say, certain operators demand partial rental remittance halfway through the day, and impose a fine of P50 for those who do not, or who cannot, because they still haven’t raised enough fare to meet half of the rental. Some withhold licenses if the driver is unable to meet the day’s rental, even if the unit had been partly garaged for repairs.
And so what do they plan to do? Many of them say they would stop driving after the Sinulog, either to return to their hometown and start farming again, or try to look for other work. One driver said there are already many taxi units without drivers.
If many of the taxi drivers would do what they plan to do after tomorrow, then chances are there would be less taxi units plying the city’s street next week. Would this be good or bad for the city dwellers?
Perhaps, there would be less traffic. And since we are approaching the summer months, there would be less rain and the compulsion to ride taxis to escape getting wet would be obvious. Then, there would be less gasoline consumption, less air pollution, and less expense on the riding public.
Well, the idea seems good for the city dwellers, especially for those who have private vehicles to move around with. And the PUJ drivers would be the real beneficiaries, since there would be more people taking the jeepneys. Then perhaps, this situation would be the only benefit we could get from the high cost of gasoline, making city life a little less complex, and a lot more satisfying to live in.
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (January 14, 2006 issue)
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