Wednesday, July 23, 2008 Transport group mulls holding strike vs oil price hike
A MAJOR transport group said they would likely stage strike this weekend to dramatize their opposition to the continued increase in the prices of diesel and other oil products.
"We might as well not go out on weekend since we cannot even earn a little during the weekend. We're not earning due to the continued rise in the price of diesel," said Pinag-isang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Opereytors Nationwide (Piston) secretary general George San Mateo.
San Mateo said drivers have been at the losing end starting this year when the prices of oil started going up due to the failure of the government to fully address their demand to lift the expanded value-added tax (VAT) on oil products and to repeal the oil deregulation law.
He noted that in past weekends, fewer families have been going out, preferring instead to stay home due to the high costs of living and transportation.
The Land Transportation and Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB) recently approved a fare increase that pegged the minimum fare for passenger jeeps in Metro Manila at P8.50 from the previous P8.
But San Mateo said the fare increase is not enough for drivers to cope with the continued rise in diesel price.
Piston and other transport groups such as the Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines (Fejodap) said they are mulling another fare increase petition that will raise the minimum fare further to P10.
San Mateo said jeep drivers consume an average of 30 liters of diesel a day adding that at P56 a liter, jeep drivers have to spend a minimum of P1,680 a day for fuel.
Last Sunday, oil companies rolled back the price of diesel by P1.50 per liter upon a direct appeal from President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
The government has also instituted several measures to cushion the impact of the oil price increase through programs such as fuel subsidy to public utility vehicle drivers and rice subsidy for their families.
Malacañang also asked oil firms to explain to the government and the public the reason for the increase to avoid confusion and misunderstanding.
But militant and transport groups believed that the rollback was "just another publicity stunt of the Arroyo administration to appease the anger of the public in time for the President's State of the Nation Address (Sona) on July 28."
"The P1.50 rollback is insignificant compared to the 20 times price increases imposed by the oil giants (Pilipinas Shell, Petron Corp. and Chevron Caltex) since the start of this year. Only this weekend, the price of diesel rose by P3 a liter," San Mateo said.
He said the rollback only shows that the government has the capability to intervene contrary to its earlier stand to let market forces determine the prices of oil products.
"It also exposes as a sham the contention of the oil companies that they are not abusing the oil deregulation law," he said.
Early Tuesday, militant groups stormed the offices of Pilipinas Shell and Petron in Makati city to dramatize their opposition against the skyrocketing cost of fuel products.
Gabriela secretary general Cristina Palabay said oil firms have been garnering huge profits contrary to their claim of under-recoveries.
Palabay quoted the data provided by the Ibon Foundation showing that in 2007, Shell earned P4.12 billion; Chevron, P2.75 billion; and Petron, P5.94 billion. (AH/Sunnex)
