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Public transportation drivers who participated in the government’s Service Contracting Program (CSP) said they have yet to receive the payouts promised for participating in the initiative.
“Wala pa kasing bayad sa ‘min eh, mag-aano na 20 days wala pang bayad sa ‘min. Halos lahat kami na dito sa Muñoz-SM Monumento…Pakiusap ko lang po sana maibigay yung bayad sa amin sa contracting para makinabang naman din kami,” a driver said in Marisol Abdurahman’s report on “24 Oras.”
(We have not received our payments yet; it has been nearly 20 days without compensation. This affects almost all of us on the Muñoz-SM Monumento route… I appeal to the authorities to please release our contracting payments so that we may finally benefit from them.)
“Wala pa po e, sabi sa December pa raw, parang malabo na ata. Sana naman mabigyan na kami,” another driver added.
(We haven’t received anything yet. We were told it might be delayed until December, but even that seems unlikely now. We hope we will finally be paid.)
The SCP is an initiative of the Department of Transportation to help ease the drivers’ financial burden amid rising fuel prices due to the conflict in the Middle East.
The agreement required PUV operators to give passengers a 20% discount in exchange for a ₱30-per-kilometer government subsidy.”
“P3,000 bayad sana ‘yan para sa 10 ikot sa rutang may kabuuang layo na 100 kilometro,” Abdurahman said in her report.
(That was supposed to be a ₱3,000 payment for 10 rounds on a route with a total distance of 100 kilometers.)
Aside from traditional jeepneys, modern jeepneys, city buses, and bus ways also participated in the program:
Traditional jeepney – P30/km (maximum of 100 km)
Modern jeepney – P30/km (maximum of 100 km)
City bus – P82/km
Bus way – P100/km
According to the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), around 16,000 to 17,000 operator units benefited from the program.
Meanwhile, 23 million to 24 million passengers were given fare discounts under the CSP.
The LTFRB has not yet clarified when they will pay the drivers, and whether they will extend the program.
Currently, the LTFRB is focusing on its fuel subsidy program, a choice preferred by some drivers. —Lyjah Tiffany Bonzo/LDF, GMA News
