TRANSPORT group Manibela is holding anew a three-day nationwide transport strike starting on April 15 to condemn what they described as the government’s inaction on the rising fuel prices amid the tension in the Middle East.
In a press conference, Manibela chairperson Mar Valbuena lashed out the government, particularly the Department of Energy and Department of Transportation for its failure control the prices of fuel.
“Pagkondena ito sa kapabayaan ng pamahalaan, lalo na ng DOE at ng DOTr, at pakikipagsabwatan sa mga oil companies na nakinabang ng bilyong piso,” Manibela said.
(This is a condemnation of the government’s negligence, especially of the DOE and DOTr, and their collusion with oil companies that have benefited by billions of pesos.)
Valbuena said the strike which will be held until Friday, April 17, will be joined by an estimated 500,000 jeepneys and other public utility vehicles across the country.
He said they will call for the fuel price reduction down to P55 per liter as well as the suspension of the value-added tax and excise tax.
The national government also provided cash assistance to all public utility drivers and operators to cushion the impact of rising fuel prices.
In a press conference, Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro called for a dialogue between the government and transport groups noting that such protest action is unnecessary.
Castro explained that President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has no power to suspend or reduce the value-added tax on fuel due to the absence of laws granting the President of such.
“Wala pong kapangyarihan ang Pangulo na mag-suspend ng VAT dahil walang batas sa ngayon na siya ay binibigyan ng kapangyarihan. So baka nagkakaroon ng misconception, at ngayon ay baka nakakarating sa mga transport sectors, sa mga drivers, sa operators na sa isang click ay masu-suspend ng Pangulo ang VAT,” she said.
(There is no power for the President to suspend VAT because there is currently no law that grants him such authority. So there might be a misconception, and now it may be reaching the transport sectors, the drivers, and the operators that with just one click, the President can suspend VAT.)
“Nakikita natin mismo kung ano na ang ginagawa at nagawa ng Pangulo at ng administrasyon para sa transport sector. Sila nga iyong inuna. With or without any strike, transport strike, ang Pangulo naman ay dumidinig sa mga hinaing ng bawat Pilipino lalung-lalo na sa transport sector,” she added.
(We are seeing for ourselves what the President and the administration have done and are continuing to do for the transport sector. In fact, they were the first to be prioritized. With or without any transport strike, the President listens to the concerns of every Filipino, especially those in the transport sector.)
Marcos earlier signed into law Republic Act 12316, granting the executive branch the authority to temporarily suspend or reduce excise taxes on petroleum products in response to surging global oil prices brought about by the conflict in the Middle East. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)