Solons urge DOTr to allow resumption of PUV operations: Restriction caused chaos

By JOHN CARLO M. CAHINHINAN

Lawmakers have urged the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to finally allow public utility vehicles particularly jeepneys and buses to ply the road again due to stranded commuters desperately waiting for a ride to their destinations.

Magdalo Party-list Rep. Manuel Cabochan said the restriction against PUVs despite the easing of lockdown under the general community quarantine (GCQ) “has caused chaos and did not lower the risk of COVID-19 transmission.”

“It has caused more people to crowd while scampering to get on limited government vehicles. Both social distancing and safety protocols were not observed.

Cabochan stressed the restriction with the current policy, it is not only the commuters that are struggling but also the drivers.

“Sa loob ng halos tatlong buwan na walang pasada, malaki ang nawawalang kabuhayan para sa kanila at sa kanilang mga pamilya. Allowing PUVs to operate would then be beneficial for both the commuters and drivers,” said Cabochan.

Cabochan scored the current restriction, saying that it “is anti-poor and out of touch with reality.”

“If we want order instead of chaos, then the government should provide a well-planned system,” said Cabochan.

Bayan Muna Party-list Rep. Ferdinand Gaite shared the same sentiments as that of Cabochan, saying that the ongoing ban on PUVs “was imposed without warning and without consulting jeepney drivers and operators.”

According to Gaite, what DOTr did “was completely callous,” since these drivers have been off the road for the whole duration of the lockdown—earning nothing and barely receiving any help from the government.

“Most, if not all of them are already cash-strapped, their families hungry, and they desperately need to continue their livelihood,” said Gaite.

Gaite stressed the ban couldn’t be described “as anything else but a traitorous act just so DOTr can fulfill its desire to rid our roads of jeepneys and push their anti-poor modernization program.”

Source: Latest Politics News Today (Politics.com.ph)