Commuters bear brunt of inflation; Palace says this is temporary

File Photo
File Photo

COMMUTERS will bear the brunt of accelerating inflation as the minimum jeepney fare will be increased to P10 beginning November.

"We really have to take the brunt sa ngayon (as of the moment)," Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said on Thursday, October 18, when asked to comment on the fare hike.

He assured that the current situation in the country is merely "temporary."

"The message is always this is just temporary. So hopefully when everything settles down, babalik tayo sa dati (everything will go back to normal)," he said.

"If you notice there have been changes in the prices in the market. They're slowly tapering. So sa palagay ko tama ang sinasabi ng economic managers, hindi naman ito permanente (I trust the economic managers' pronouncement that this is not permanent)," he added.

Jeepney passengers in Metro Manila, Central Luzon, and Southern Tagalog will have to pay a minimum fare of P10 starting November, after the Land Transporation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) approved the petition of transport groups for a fare increase.

In its decision, the LTFRB made permanent the provisional increase of P1 granted in July 2019, and granted another P1 increase for the first four kilometers, increasing the minimum fare rate to P10.

The decision stemmed from the petition of transport groups in September, which requested for a fare increase to cushion the impact of the continuing rise in fuel prices and operational costs.

With the continuing rise in prices of fuel and basic commodities and the price of Dubai crude based on MOPS remaining above $80 per barrel, the country's economic managers said the suspension mechanism provided in the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (Train) law has been triggered and should be activated.

If activated, the second round of increases in the excise taxes on fuel products that are scheduled for implementation in January 2019 would be suspended.

The economic team has suggested that President Rodrigo Duterte announce the suspension early.

Although he has expressed his intent to suspend the excise taxes on petroleum products, the President has yet to announce the suspension. (SunStar Philippines)

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