Wednesday, December 06, 2006 Mandaue drivers ask for daily subsidy
MORE than 2,000 jeepney and tricycle drivers are asking for a daily subsidy of P500 to P1,000 each per day during the four-day Asean summit next week.
Officers of the Nagkahiusang Drayber sa Sugbo (Nadsu) said they won’t be able to provide for their families because they won’t be plying their routes to help decongest the roads.
And since they are doing this to help make the summit successful, Nadsu officers are requesting the national organizing committee (NOC) of the Asean summit to provide them with the amount they are to earn from Dec. 11 to 14.
A Nadsu official warned that if the NOC does not give in to their request, they will hold a protest rally in three locations in Metro Cebu.
They have yet to agree on the time and manner that the protests will be held.
The drivers said they won’t be plying their routes because the road closures will force them to take alternative routes that are circuitous or roads where traffic flow will be heavy.
Major roads in the cities of Cebu, Lapu-Lapu and Mandaue will be closed at certain hours of the day to ensure the security of the heads of state and other foreign dignitaries who will be in Cebu for the summit.
Nadsu treasurer Eduard Geolin said yesterday that subsidy for tricycle drivers will be P500 per unit per day.
Jeepney drivers, on the other hand, are asking P1,000 per unit per day.
Geolin said the amount represents the average earnings jeepney drivers make in 16 hours of work in a day.
Of the amount, P700 goes to the operator while the rest goes to the driver.
In a press conference at the Nadsu office yesterday, Geolin said that during the dry run of the rerouting scheme last week, many drivers were forced to return their units to their operators because of the losses they incurred.
Many passengers opted to disembark from the jeepneys and walk instead because of the heavy traffic.
Fuel consumption was also high because the vehicles moved at a slow pace.
Nadsu’s membership spans Cebu Province but the requested subsidy will cover only the drivers who will be directly affected by the rerouting.
There are about four chapters of Nadsu in Lapu-Lapu City and eight in Mandaue City.
About 12 chapters in Cebu City will also be affected in the rerouting.
A chapter consists of some 100 members each.
Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo Ouano earlier said he will endorse the request of the drivers to the summit organizers as long as they put the request in writing and specify the amount they want.
When sought for comment yesterday, Ouano told Sun.Star Cebu that the request has to be evaluated first.
“If they won’t be plying their routes, why would they still give to the operator?” he pointed out.
When told of the drivers’ plan to stage a protest, he said: “Pilosopo tonto na na.”
Geolin said that since millions of pesos were spent for the hosting of the summit, organizers should also be able to provide subsidy to the drivers.
Ferry Sia, who represented the chapter from Lapu-Lapu City, said many passengers didn’t give their fares when they alighted from his jeepney during the dry run last week.
All vehicles from Lapu-Lapu City are allowed to use only the first Mactan-Mandaue Bridge. They would have to pass through interior roads in Barangays Looc and Cambaro in proceeding to the north reclamation area and Cebu City.
Public utility jeepneys will be allowed only up to the Cebu International Port, where they will have to make a u-turn and head back to Lapu-Lapu City.
Sia said it took about four hours for one round trip.
In the case of the drivers plying the Country Mall-Banilad route, they were made to pass though the M.C. Briones Highway from A.S. Fortuna St.
However, they couldn’t proceed to the north because of the road closure. They had to make a u-turn under the Maguikay flyover and head back to Banilad.
It is a short route but it took about three hours for a round trip. A lot of fuel was also wasted due to the huge volume of vehicles diverted to the route. (AAG)
