Piston fails to cripple public transportation

CEBU, Philippines - The Pinag-kaisang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (PISTON)-Cebu made good their promise not to inconvenience the riding public in their strike yesterday, where they opposed the phasing out of old jeepneys.

"So far wala pa man kadaot sa mga jeepneys" said Cebu City Transportation Operation’s Chief Francisco “Isko” Ouano.

Around 70 traffic enforcers and 40 police officers from Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) and Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) were deployed during the caravan.

Greg Perez, coordinator of PISTON-Cebu, said their 11-hour transport protest caravan was generally peaceful and has not disrupted Metro Cebu’s jeepney passengers.

“Peaceful ra man ang gipahigayon namo nga transport protest caravan. Wala ra pud na distorbo ang mga pasahero kay dili man gyud tumong namo nga makahasul mi nila,” he said.

PISTON-Cebu members, on board their 14 jeepneys and 15 motorcycles, together with their support groups Gabriela, Anakbayan, urban poor groups and workers groups, converged in Barangay Ibabao in Mandaue City and passed by the cities of Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu and Talisay.

They capped their caravan with a rally at the office of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), where they continue to voice out their opposition on the plan to phase out 15-year-old and above jeepneys.

Perez said that they only finished their program at 5 p.m. which was supposed to end at 8 p.m. but opted to cut it short as the participants were already tired and weary.

“We would like to thank the protest organizers for keeping their promise of not compromising public convenience. Likewise, we wish to thank the LGUs as well as cooperating agencies and private transport companies for ensuring that back-up vehicles and related services were well in place. What happened today is an indication that anyone can make protest actions without making the public suffer,” LTFRB-7 Regional Director Ahmed Cuizon said.

Cuizon said that he listened intently to the driver’s demands and he strongly feel that they should give the government’s new transport initiatives a chance.

“Instead of rejecting the PUJ Modernization Program, for instance, Piston should welcome the fact that the government has arranged for a low-interest credit facility to enable them to hop on board our efforts for progress. We therefore call on them to open their minds to change instead of resisting it,” Cuizon added

Cebu City’s chairman on public order and safety Councilor David Tumulak said the rally did not affect the commuters.

In fact, no Kaohsiung buses have been deployed to ferry the stranded commuters.

At the same time, Cebu City Command Center did not receive any report affected by the surfaced rally yesterday. (FREEMAN)