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Strike immobilizes jeepney routes in Metro Manila, regional centers nationwide

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The ongoing jeepney strike immobilized jeepney routes in Metro Manila and several regions nationwide by as much as 100 percent, the Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Operator Nationwide (PISTON) reported.

Despite threats of punishment by the government, the nationwide protest action against the phaseout of the iconic jeepney failed to deter drivers and small operators who also trooped to Mendiola in Manila to protest the government’s controversial modernization program of public utility vehicles.

PISTON said Cubao-San Juan,Cubao-Divisoria, Malolos (Bulacan)-San Fernando (Pampanga), Jollibee Molino, Alabang-Zapote, Marcos-Alvarez, Sangandaan-Pajo-Divisoria, and the Zobel Roxas- Paco jeepney routes have been 100% paralyzed starting 7AM.

The group added that Cubao-Quiapo, Kalaw-Proj. 2&3, Navotas-Divisoria-Recto-Monumento-Malabon,Pateros-Pasig, Paliparan-Zapote, Bagong Silangan (Quezon City) and Sta. Rosa in Laguna is also completely paralyzed.

Dozens of other routes in Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog, Bicol and several cities in the Visayas have also participated in the strike, mostly by PISTON members.

Few jeepneys are seen plying their routes in major routes around Metro Manila such as Commonwealth Avenue, C5, and Rizal Province.

The Department of Transportation earlier warned the strikers that they will face both administrative and criminal sanctions, including the revocation of their license.

Transport group Manibela initiated the protest by announcing last week a five-day transport strike that PISTON decided to support.

Both Manibela and PISTON are demanding President Ferdinand Marcos’ Jr.’s revocation of DoTr’s public transport modernization guidelines mandating small operators to surrender their franchises to cooperatives and big businesses.

In a bid to prevent today’s transport strike, the DoTr has moved the deadline of the phaseout from June 31 to December 31, to no avail.

PISTON national president Mody Floranda earlier explained that the transport strike is their only way of being heard by the government.

Floranda said that while they are not opposing the modernization of the country’s public transport system, it should not come at the expense of the livelihood of hundreds of thousands of jeepney drivers and small operators.

The ongoing strike is the largest since the start of the pandemic in 2020. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)

PISTON announces support of transport strike next week

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A major national federation expressed support for the week-long transport strike next week announced by drivers’ group Manibela starting Monday, March 6.

The Pagkakaisa ng Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (PISTON) said it is ready to back the strike against the phase out of public utility vehicles (PUV) like jeepneys and the compulsory transport franchise consolidation by the government.

“Pinakikita lamang nito na handang makipaglaban ang iba’t ibang samahan para pigilan ang sapilitang franchise consolidation at PUV phaseout na patuloy na itinutulak ng gobyerno. Handang protektahan ng mga tsuper at maliliit na operator ang kanilang kabuhayan dahil buhay ng pamilya nila ang nakasalalay rito lalo sa panahon ngayon ng matinding krisis sa ekonomiya,” PISTON national president Mody Floranda said.

(This shows that several organizations are willing to fight to stop the forced consolidation and PUV phaseout being pushed by the government. Drivers and small operators are ready to defend their livelihood especially in this very hard up times.)

PISTON ready to back planned transport strike against PUV phaseout, compulsory franchise consolidation

PISTON explained that mandating operators to consolidate their individual franchises under a cooperative or corporation is “wrong, deceitful, and coercive” as it deprives operators of their rights and privileges as individual franchise holders.

It added that only big corporations with single consolidated franchises have the financial capacity to purchase and fully comply with the current PUV Modernization Program (PUVMP) schemes.

“Kapag nag-consolidate ka ng prangkisa sa ilalim ng isang kooperatiba o korporasyon, sinusurender mo yung karapatan mo sa indibidwal mong prangkisa. Sa oras na di ka makabayad sa napakamahal na halaga ng modernization, wala ka nang babalikan dahil pinilit kang isuko ang prangkisa mo,” explained Floranda.

(If a small operator agrees to a consolidation under a cooperative or corporation, he gives up his single-ownership franchise. If it turns out that he could not afford to pay the very expsensive modernization schemes, he could no longer go back to his livelihood.)

The transport leader added that the lost franchises shall then be sold by the Land Transportation and Regulatory Board to large corporations who can afford the imported mini-buses the government wants to ply the roads.

In response to the transport strike announced on Monday, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said that the department is “giving enough ample time to transport groups to muster enough funds to buy new units” in order to comply with the government’s PUV modernization program.

PISTON said DOTr’s statement is a clear admission that their imported “modern” mini-busses are indeed unaffordable to small operators and drivers.

PISTON said the government must first implement a just transition program by supporting local manufacturers and allowing the rehabilitation and overhauling of traditional jeepneys to carry cleaner and environmentally sound engines.

It added that this will not only save small-time operators money, it can also further develop our local industries and create more domestic jobs.

“Bakit ba kating-kati ang gobyerno ni Marcos Jr na mag-import nang mag-import para palitan ang mga lokal nating jeepney at paglaruan ang buhay ng maralitang Pilipino? Sino ba talaga ang gusto nilang paunlarin? Malinaw na hindi ang mga Pilipino,” Floranda said.

(Why is the government so adamant about the importation of new vehicles to replace our local jeepneys? They are playing with the lives of poor Filipinos. Who are they trying to enrich? It is clearly not the Filipinos.)

Meanwhile, Manibela president Mar Valbuena shot down suggestions of a dialogue between his group, the DOTR and other transport groups opposed to the transport strike.

In a radio interview, Valbuena said the DOTr must first shut up its “dogs” in the transport industry who first benefitted in the modernization scheme by cornering new transport routes and benefitting from government loan programs to buy new vehicles.

In supporting transport strike, Floranda told Kodao that PISTON will join Manibela rallies wherever they will be held.

He added that PISTON is still in the process of determining which of its chapters nationwide would be able to hold transport strikes in support of Manibela. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)

After 7 years, Cavite 4 walk free from ‘wrongful conviction’

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By Joseph Cuevas

The last of the group of detainees called the Cavite 4 walked free from Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City on Monday, February 6, after being cleared from his other pending cases.

Rommel Nuñez regained his freedom after seven years, along with George Bruce, Jose Nayve and Armando Matres who were earlier released on January 31.

In a 26-page decision last January 26, the 4 were acquitted of the charges of illegal possession of explosives and malicious mischief by Taguig Regional Trial Court Branch 266 Judge Marivic Vitor.

In a separate order last January 30, the Court issued a release order, saying the four have served more than the minimum prison sentence for their conviction for illegal gun possession.

Atty. Noel Neri of the Pro Labor Assistance Center and counsel to the Cavite 4 said the Court granted their Urgent Motion to Release because of the total years his clients served in detention.

Neri added that they will file a Motion for Reconsideration on the conviction of the newly-freed detainees.

Rommel Nunez (right) fetched from jail by his lawyer Noel Neri of the Pro Labor Assistance Center. (Noel Neri photo)

Wrongfully accused

To this day, the Cavite 4 maintain their innocence on the charges filed against them.

In November 23, 2015, the four happened to be together at a fair (peryahan) at Barangay Manggahan in General Trias, Cavite when they heard gunshots nearby.

The next thing they knew, the police approached them and ordered them to lie on the ground. They were beaten and dragged into a police vehicle.

At the police station, the four were subjected to more torture and accused of being members of the New People’s Army allegedly responsible for firing guns at the vicinity of the fairgrounds.

Nayve recalled a plastic bag was repeatedly placed on his head to suffocate him. He and Bruce were also electrocuted. Nuñez and Matres were hit with butts of assault rifles several times.

Nayve at the time of their arrest was a coordinator of Pinagkaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (PISTON) in Cavite while Nunez and Matres were construction workers and Bruce was a utility vehicle driver.

The four were subjected to more interrogation that only stopped when human rights defenders found them at the Malabon District Jail in General Trias City.

Slow-pace of trial

The four were finally charged at Trece Martires City but their trial proceeded slowly due to several delays and rescheduling.

The four then petitioned the Supreme Court to transfer their trial to Taguig City, which was granted in 2019.

Even then, jail authorities in Camp Bagong Diwa claimed they were often unaware of trial schedules and did not receive subpoenas for the Cavite 4, further delaying their case. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic also delayed the proceedings.

Time to rebuild

But the 4 have finally walked free, albeit separately, their respective families eagerly waiting their release.

Bruce’s wife Rowena said that she and their children are happy to reunite with her husband. She said they suffered untold hardships in the past seven years as George was the only breadwinner of the family.

They also lost their home due to Taal Volcano’s eruption in January 2020 and appeal for help in rebuilding it now that George is free once more. #

Consumers demand cash aid, wage hike as more oil price increases loom

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A network of consumers’ rights advocates demanded that government continue with the roll out of its promised aid to families severely affected by recent spikes in prices of goods and services.

The Samahan at Ugnayan ng mga Konsyumer para sa Ikauunlad ng Bayan (SUKI Network) said their demand for cash assistance for affected families, transport workers, small businesses and producers are unchanged despite the rollback in oil prices this week.

The group also pressed the government to implement salary increases and reduce prices by scrapping oil excise taxes to help poor families recover from pandemic consumer woes.

SUKI Network is composed of organizations of poor sectors such as drivers, the urban poor, workers, farmers, small entrepreneurs, academics, church people, advocates of the right to food and basic needs, social services, public utilities, among others.

Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay) officer Eufemia Doringo said such demands are just as they see further increases in prices of goods and services as another round of oil prices loom nest week.

“Transport workers with the Pinagkaisang Lakas ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (PISTON) say they are far from recovered with the Php11.45/liter rollback. They have lost income from 11 consecutive weeks of oil price increases this year exceeding Php30.00,” Doringo said.

Doringo reported that in the urban poor community of Sitio San Roque, Barangay North Triangle, Quezon City, rice is being sold at Php35-36/kilo, pork bones at Php250-300/kilo, dried fish at Php10-20/piece, cabbage at Php50-80/piece and sugar at (Php53-Php70/kilo.

Consumer rights advocate Bantay Konsyumer, Kalsada at Kuryente (BKKK) also criticized increased electricity rates it said would impact so-called lifeline consumers.

BKKK convenor Prof. Louie Montemar said the government should consider using the Malampaya funds to subsidize electricity rates and offset the new Php0.0625 per kilowatt hour (kWh) increase, bringing rates to Php9.6467 per kWh.

Government shows lack of control

Ariel Casilao of Anakpawis meanwhile said that the rollback indicates price manipulation on the part of oil cartels.

“They easily announced a rollback after raking super-profits from the total several weeks’ hike of up to Php30.75 per liter in the price of diesel, up to20.50 for gasoline and PHp24.90 for kerosene,” Casilao explained.

The former legislator said the rise and fall in oil prices also shows government’s lack of control of the oil industry under the Oil Deregulation Law.

“As long as deregulation is in place, the nation and the public are at the mercy of giant oil companies’ opaque pricing schemes. The unbundling of the price of petroleum products in the recommended amendments to the deregulation law would be welcome,” Casilao said.

The SUKI network said it demands the unbundling of petroleum product prices, scrapping of the oil excise tax and Oil Deregulation Law, Php10,000 cash assistance for the 18 million poorest households, Php15,000 subsidy to producers, substantial support for small local businesses, and a Php750 national minimum wage.

Collect Marcoses’ unpaid taxes

The network said Duterte’s recent order to increase its monthly financial aid to the poorest Filipino families affected by oil price increases from Php200 to Php500 still only amounts to just Php16.67 per day.

It also cited figures from economic think tank IBON Foundation that the real value of the minimum wage has fallen from Php536.74 in 2016 to Php494.02 in February 2022.

According to IBON, the living wage is now at Php1,072 per day or Php25,252 per month for a family of five in the National Capital Region.”

“The argument that there aren’t funds for the people’s demands is worn and torn,” SUKI Network spokesperson Prof. Reginald Vallejos said.

“IBON has shown that if the Duterte government really wants to help its constituency, it can reallocate the trillions it budgeted for big-ticket infrastructure, debt servicing, and military and police modernization; recover tax cuts given to big corporations; and tax the bilionaires,” Vallejos said.

Kadamay’s Doringo added that the government must also decisively collect Php203 billion estate tax arrears of the heirs of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos as additional source of funds for its cash aid roll out.

“Instead of letting them go scott-free while tens of thousands of small businesses are forced to close due to lack of government support, the Marcoses should be obliged by government to face the law and pay up”, Doringo said. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)

Pahayag ng grupong PISTON hinggil sa ‘No Vax, No Ride’ policy

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Habang patuloy ang kanilang protesta sa bantang phase-out sa mga jeepney at walang awat na taas-presyo ng langis, mariing tinututulan ng Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Operator Nationwide o PISTON ang ipinapatupad na “NO VACCINE, NO RIDE” at inilarawan na isang kontra-drayber at kontra-mamamayan na patakarang ipinapairal ng pamahalaan sa panahon ng pandemya.

Court acquits PISTON leader vs LTFRB charge

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The Metropolitan Trial Court of Quezon City (MTC-QC) acquitted a transport leader against charges filed by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) in 2017.

Pinagkaisang Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (PISTON) president emeritus George San Mateo said MTC-QC Branch 43 acquitted him of the charges filed by the transport agency in connection with his role in the nationwide transport strikes opposing the LTFRB’s so-called jeepney modernization program.

“According to the court, I am acquitted of the charge against me by the LTFRB of allegedly violating the Public Service Act (Commonwealth Act No 146) when I was PISTON president,” San Mateo said.

MTC-QC Branch 43 conducted an open court promulgation of his case that he watched online, San Mateo said.

Then PISTON president, San Mateo led nationwide strikes against the so called jeepney modernization scheme in February and October of 2017 which the LTFRB said is disallowed and may lead to cancellations of permits to operate.

San Mateo said the court’s decision has validated their stand that the jeepney drivers’ right to hold strikes is more important than LTFRB’s threats.

“This should be considered a victory for the right of PUV drivers, small operators and the people to peaceably and militantly assemble to air their legitimate grievances and aspirations,” San Mateo said.

San Mateo called on both drivers and passengers to carry on the fight against the phase out of jeepneys and the “business of fake public utility vehicle modernization by the Duterte, Department of Transportation and LTFRB regimes.”

The decision was released two years to the day when San Mateo was arrested and allowed to post bail. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)

Transport leader beaten up inside police station

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A transport group said its leader arrested Sunday was beaten up inside the Daraga, Albay police station by suspected military intelligence agents.

The Pinagkaisang Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (PISTON) said its vice president and its Bicol chapter CONDOR-PISTON spokesperson Ramon Rescovilla was beaten up by three burly men inside the Daraga police station.

While undergoing tactical interrogation, Rescovilla was punched five times on his body and head. He was also kicked on his right foot, the group reported.

Rescovilla was arrested at a bridge near his home between Barangays Bintayan and Kilicao in Daraga, Albay Province at 4 pm by about 20 civilian-clad and uniformed police and military personnel.

The transport group leader told his colleagues he was ordered to lie face down on the pavement and handcuffed while an orange body bag was forcibly slung across his body when arrested.

When the bag was later opened by the police, a gun and a grenade was seen inside, a criminal charge the Philippine National Police has filed against many activists.

The police also refused Rescovilla’s requests for a medical check up after the beating as no doctor was available at the time.

Rescovilla’s son Bryan was told by a brother said the victim was crying in pain when found by family members at the police station.

Ayon, umiiyak, hinahawakan iyong tiyan. Binugbog yata sa loob,” regional alternative news group Baretang Bikolnon reported. (He was crying, holding his stomach. He may have been beaten while under police custody.)

Rescovilla had been continuously red-tagged and harassed by state forces prior to the arrest, PISTON said in a statement.

Rescovilla is the fourth activist arrested in the Bicol region since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)

‘Kailangan pa ring panghawakan ang laban sa pekeng modernisasyon’

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“Bagamat kinikilala bilang tagumpay, kailangan pa rin nating panghawakan ang laban sa pekeng modernisasyon. Niraratsada pa rin ng sabwatang Duterte-DOTR-LTFRB ang jeepney phaseout sa gitna ng pandemya para bigyang daan ang imported at napakamahal na “modern” jeeps bilang kapalit ng tradisyunal na jeep.” — Mody Floranda, National President, PISTON

Araw ng Pakikiisa sa mga tsuper na nawalan ng hanapbuhay

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Sa sama-samang suporta mula sa mga grupo at indibidwal, sa pangunguna ng Bayanihan Alay sa Sambayanan (BALSA), nakapaghatid ng tulong sa mga tsuper na nawalan ng hanapbuhay ngayong Hunyo 27 sa C.P. Garcia Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City.

Panawagan ng mga tsuper na makabalik na sila sa kalsada upang hindi na mamalimos at may ipakain sa kanilang pamilya. Nanawagan din sila laban sa phase out ng mga jeepney na tangi nilang hanapbuhay. (Bidyo ni Jek Alcaraz/Kodao)

Balik-pasada at ayuda, hiling ng mga tsuper

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Ginanap ngayong araw, Hunyo 27, ang Araw ng Pakikiisa para sa mga Jeepney Driver. Nagkaroon ng magkakahiwalay na pagbibigay ng ayuda sa iba’t ibang pondohan ng mga tsuper sa Metro Manila.

Pangunahing tinulungan ng Bayang Matulungin, isang proyekto ng Bayan Muna at PagAsa, ang mga tsuper sa Project 3, Quezon City, Samson Road, Caloocan City, at Rizal Ave., Manila. Nasa mahigit isang daan ang kanilang natulungan.

Panawagan ng mga tsuper na ibalik na sila sa pamamasada at bigyan ng ayuda ang bawat isa. Lampas 100 araw na ang lockdown, ganun din ang kanilang tigil-pasada. Kasama ang kanilang pamilya sa mga apektado ng kanilang kawalang-trabaho. (Bidyo nila Jo Maline Mamangun, Jola Mamangun, at Reggie Mamangun)