LTFRB to suspend PUJs that took part in protest

CEBU, Philippines - The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) will be issuing the suspension order this week for Public Utility Jeepneys that participated in recent strikes and mass protests.

LTFRB Regional Director Romulo Bernardes said that they will be issuing the order when he arrives from the director’s conference in General Santos City.

Bernardes said that his office is in-charge for the issuance of suspension for the vehicles while the suspension of the drivers, who participated in the rally, will be made by the Land Transportation Office.

He said that he already has the list of those jeepneys that participated in the protest, particularly the one last March 16 which crippled routes in the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Talisay and other nearby municipalities.

Operators referred to there activity as mainly a protest and not a transport strike, but said they were ready to make a bigger transport strike if their demands would not be heard.

However, the protest left a lot of passengers stranded as the public was caught off-guard when numerous drivers joined in on the protest from Fuente Osmeña to the LTO-7 office.

The LTFRB said that the operators never informed his office or filed for a notice of strike.

They protested on the implementation of the Department Order No.2008-39 which meant higher fines for traffic violations.

But the action that they made angered Mayor Tomas Osmeña, who was here in Cebu at that time.

After hearing of the damage that the protest did to the public, he ordered the LTFRB to act on it and if possible, revoke the franchises of those jeepneys whose routes were crippled.

At that time, LTFRB reportedly had 13 jeepneys included in their list which participated in the protest and be held for out of line violations, this is when a PUJ is not traveling within his designated area upon stated in their franchise. Most of the jeepneys were from the north-bound routes 21B, 23, 24 and 29. —AJ A. de la Torre/NLQ (THE FREEMAN)