The Malayang Alyansa ng Bus Employees at Laborers Para sa Karapatan sa Paggawa (Manibela) vowed to push through with a nationwide transport strike on Monday but seven other groups said they will not be part of it. As of Saturday, Manibela has not recanted the declaration of its president, Mar Valbuena, that it will stage a rally against the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP). ‘Tuloy na tuloy dahil ‘yung nakaamba rin na deadline sa amin na December 31 (It’s definitely a go because of the December 31 deadline),’ Valbuena said in an interview with radio station dzBB on Thursday, referring to the PUVMP. However, seven other transport groups said their members will not join the strike. The leaders of the Liga ng Transportasyon at Operators sa Pilipinas, Pasang Masda, Stop and Go Transport Coalition, Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide, Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines, Alliance of Concerned Transport Organizations Alliance of Concerned Transport Organizations, and Alliance of Transport Operators and Drivers Association said the strike will only add to the problems of the transport sector. Valbuena said the recantation of Jefferson Tumbado, the former executive assistant of Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) chairperson Teofilo Guadiz III, on his allegations of corruption has no bearing on the decision to stage the strike. Tumbado later withdrew his accusations and apologized to Guadiz, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista and the Office of the President for his ‘irrational thinking, misjudgment and poor decision-making.” The seven transport groups issued a manifesto supporting the leadership of Guadiz. Schools in various parts of the country have already decided to shift to online mode on Monday in anticipation of the strike while some local government units will offer ‘libreng sakay’ (free ride) services. The PUVMP consolidation deadline has been moved from December 2021 to June 2022, then to March 2023, June 2023 and Dec. 31, 2023. “As part of its enhanced managing police operations, the PNP (Philippine National Police) will be deploying personnel in areas and other convergence points where protests are projected to be held, in order to maintain law and order and provide security to individuals and groups joining the protest,” PNP Public Information Office chief and spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo, in a text message to reporters on Saturday. PNP mobility assets will also be on standby to provide “‘libreng sakay’ if the need arises,” Fajardo said. Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said in a press briefing on Friday that allegations on LTFRB corruption should not hinder the implementation of infrastructure projects for the transport sector. ‘I think that the infrastructure projects are already in the various stages of implementation and identification. The ones that we are implementing have been long well-identified there in the Public Investment Programs,’ Balisacan said, referring to the program which contains the priority programs and projects within the medium-term to attain the goals and targets in the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028.
Source: Philippines News Agency
