MANILA -- The continuous oil price increase would definitely result in another fare hike and higher cost of prime commodities, a militant youth organization warned Saturday.

Petron and Shell implemented another round of increase on Friday following a recent uptick a day before. Chevron and other gas retailers, meanwhile, are expected to follow suit.

“Drivers and the public, including the youth and students, will definitely bear the brunt of higher price of oil as it will trickle down to the price of prime commodities and fare,” said Anakbayan-Southern Mindanao spokesperson Cherry Orendain.

Research group IBON said that the P141.7-billion profit of the so-called Big Three (Chevron, Shell and Petron) in the last decade is more than the combined income of the country’s poorest 2.36 million families-amounting to P114.3 billion in 2009.

“More than the palliative measures such as the fuel subsidy cards for drivers, the government must immediately do something about this new round of oil price increase,” Orendain said, referring to the P450-million Pantawid Pasada program, which may be extended by Malacanang to cushion the impact of oil price hikes. (Virgil Lopez/Sunnex)