Panay transport groups join nationwide strike
Edgar Salarda of Pinagkaisang Samahan ng Tsuper
at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston) speaks before the
various transport leaders during a transport sector
summit last Friday at the St. Clement's Retreat House.
Transport groups in the city score the latest round of
increases in the price of petroleum products.
Transport groups on Panay Island will join the nationally coordinated transport strikes and other protests today against the continued increase of oil prices.
The Pinag-Isang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operator Nationwide (Piston) and the Hugpong Transport Alliance, which groups drivers and operators of public jeepneys, tricycle, pedicabs and buses, said they will stop plying their routes at midnight today until before midnight tomorrow.
The group announced their participation after a meeting and forum at the St. Clement's Retreat House here on Friday.
Edgar Salarda, Piston-Panay coordinator, said among the groups that have declared their participation are the Federation of Iloilo Jeepney Owners and Drivers Association, which counts around 25 associations plying routes between the city and interior towns, and the Metro Iloilo Transport. Federation.
The Iloilo City Alliance of Drivers Associations (Icada), the main transport group in the city, has not officially announced its participation but majority of its members said they will join the strike, according to Salarda who is also Icada secretary.
Pedicab drivers, who do not consume fuel, are also joining the strike. Thousands of units under the Iloilo Traysikad Drivers Association will not be plying their routes in the city.
"They may not be buying fuel, but pedicab drivers and operators are also consumers who are battered by the high prices of rice and other basic commodities," said Salarda in an interview.
Transport groups in Aklan including the Federation of Aklan Integrated Public Transport Inc. and the Kalibo Tricycle Drivers and Operators Association will also be joining the strike.
In Roxas City in Capiz, transport groups led by the Hugpong Transport Capiz will hold their strike tomorrow because the city is commemorating the anniversary of the declaration of Roxas City as a chartered city today. The transport groups and militant organizations will, however, hold a march rally today from the Albar Terminal to the city hall.
The transport groups said oil prices have increased nine times this year totaling P5 per liter. They said the increase has resulted a drop in the income of jeepney drivers from December to May 3 by P1,600 per month.
The groups are demanding the scrapping of taxes on oil products to cushion the impact of price increases in the world market and the scrapping of the Oil Deregulation Law which allows oil companies to set the local pump prices of oil products.
Salarda said the removal of the value added tax and excise taxes on oil products will lessen the impact of the sharp rise of oil prices in the world market which have reach a record high of $124 per barrel last week.
Police have declared a red alert starting 6 p.m. yesterday to ensure peace and order in duration of the strike.
Senior Supt. Ricardo de la Paz, Iloilo police director, said they will set up check points and field more policemen.
They will also help ferry stranded commuters especially those coming from the interior towns to Iloilo City.
The provincial government will field at least 10 dump trucks to ferry employees and commuters from the district plazas to the city proper, said Dela Paz.