Transport group PISTON went hand-in-hand with the Makabayan bloc on Thursday, December 7, in filing a House resolution to shelve the consolidation deadline and repeal the Omnibus Franchising Guidelines (OFG).
The OFG was a framework used to implement the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP) that requires jeepney drivers and operators to join or form corporations or cooperatives.
PISTON maintained that the PUVMP would result in a monopoly of the transport sector wherein only a few corporate entities have the means to pay the modernization requirements and control over PUV routes.
“The DOTr and LTFRB insist that there is no phaseout on December 31, but only a deadline for consolidation. What they refuse to understand is that forcing small operators to surrender their right to own individual franchises is tantamount to a phaseout, not only of their vehicles but also of their livelihoods,” PISTON National President Mody Floranda said.
The resolution questions the franchise consolidation requirement's feasibility, emphasizing operators' lack of capacity to comply with the program amid financial problems.
PISTON urged the lower chamber to adopt the resolution that would protect drivers and small operators who risk being displaced by 2024.
“The problem with consolidation is that once operators enter into it, there is no franchise to reclaim. So, if the cooperatives collapse or become deeply indebted due to the unreasonable requirements of the PUVMP, operators will not be able to reclaim the franchises they surrendered because they have already been consolidated," Floranda said.
"The [Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board] will simply transfer the consolidated franchises to large cooperatives or corporations with sufficient capital. Who benefits from this? Not us small operators, but the big businesses,” he added.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) maintained its decision on the December 31 deadline of the PUVMP franchise requirement, claiming it was for the “efficient” operations of the transport sector.
