TUCP urges DOTr to convene inclusive transport sector meeting
TUCP president Raymond Democrito Mendoza —Photo from TUCP website
MANILA, Philippines — The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) has urged the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to convene groups and stakeholders to address concerns about the transportation sector.
“It is imperative that the new leadership of Transportation Secretary [Vivencio] Dizon hear and heed the grievances of our transport groups—whether on the public utility vehicle (PUV) modernization program or the provisional fare hike petition—because our jeepney drivers and our riding public are both workers,” TUCP president Raymond Democrito Mendoza said in a statement on Friday.
Mendoza is also TUCP’s party list representative in the House of Representatives, where he also serves as deputy speaker.
“All of us—jeepney drivers, commuters and workers—are barely surviving, burdened by the same daily hardships of soaring rice prices, skyrocketing water and power bills, and rising social security contributions,” Mendoza added.
Last year, TUCP, together with the country’s largest business organizations and trade unions under the national dialogue mechanism, called Leaders Forum, issued a joint statement calling for an “urgent review of the PTMP (Public Transport Modernization Program) to address its legal, financial and human rights infirmities.”
Concrete solutions
“The stakeholders’ meeting we are requesting is crucial to understanding the realities faced by those in the Philippine jeepney industry—operators, drivers and even local vehicle manufacturers,” Mendoza said.
The dialogue, according to him, could pave the way for concrete solutions, including government subsidies for local manufacturers, strengthened social protection for jeepney drivers, and upskilling and reskilling programs for transport workers.
“A truly roadworthy and environmentally friendly modern transportation system must be inclusive and sustainable,” Mendoza said.
TUCP, the country’s largest labor federation, has been calling for a meaningful consultation and inclusive policies that ensure transport modernization is fair and viable for all stakeholders without sacrificing the livelihood of thousands of our jeepney drivers and small operators and the welfare of tens of millions of passengers, mostly workers, to get to work and back home.
Dizon last week began meeting with several transport groups supporting or opposed to the PTMP.
