Bus operator: We are losing money

CEBU, Philippines - The former president of the Cebu Provincial Bus Operators Association criticized the imposition of the P5 terminal fee and said the new system implemented by the Cebu South Bus Terminal management has affected the income of the bus operators.

Nick Villahermosa said they have been greatly affected by the new system at the terminal because aside from the increase in the users’ fee, which he said was doubled, they are only allowed five minutes to park at the loading bay to get passengers.

“Dili maayo ang paagi karon, dili na husto ang ilang gihimo,” Villahermosa said over dyLA.

Villahermosa explained that bus operators are losing because they are paying P120 per entry of their buses but do not get the maximum number of passengers.

While they do not mind paying P120 instead of P60 before, they want enough time to stay at the parking bay to wait for passengers.

He admitted that some of the operators are afraid of Capitol consultant Byron Garcia prompting them to stay silent.

“Tinuod gyud na nga mangahadlok ang mga operators kay kon unsay ilang gustong buhaton ila man gyud nga ipatuman,” Villahermosa said.

Villahermosa said he will bring his complaints before the leadership of their organization during their next meeting. Although he said he was not aware whether a prior consultation was made before the new system was implemented because he just came back from abroad.

He also said the P5 terminal fee is also not necessary because the passengers do not need a waiting lounge considering that there are plenty of buses to ferry them to their destinations and it is an added burden to people in the province, especially those who are only earning below the minimum wage.

Although he understands the intention of the provincial government to make the terminal “world-class” he said the burden should not be passed on to the commuters as he believes that the fees that the bus operators are paying and the rents of the stalls in the terminal are enough to maintain and sustain its operations.

While the CSBT is exempted from the payment of business taxes, Cebu City treasurer Ofelia Oliva said the city can still shut down its operations if the terminal management does not secure a business permit from the Office of the Mayor.

The law provides that real properties owned by the Republic of the Philippines or any of its political subdivisions are exempted from the payment of taxes to any local government units, except when the beneficial use thereof has been granted to a taxable person or companies.

Oliva explained that while the Province of Cebu is exempted from paying taxes for business permit for operating the bus terminal, it is still required to secure the requirements for the issuance of a business permit, otherwise their terminal is illegal.

She also said that because the terminal management allowed private companies and individuals to lease some spaces inside the terminal building for stores, the province already lost its right to be exempted from the payment of real property taxes to the city.

Oliva has already started securing the necessary documents to find out how much in real property taxes can be collected from the province.

Cebu City Council is expected to take up the proposed ordinance of Councilor Sylvan “Jack” Jakosalem today prohibiting the mini-buses from loading and unloading of passengers inside the CSBT.

Jakosalem said he might introduce some minor amendments to his proposed ordinance as a result of his dialog with some mini-bus operators who asked the city to provide them with bus stops in strategic areas because they will no longer use the south bus terminal.

Meanwhile, Garcia said there is no basis for the Cebu City government to order the CSBT closed.

Garcia, who is tasked by the Capitol to take care of the terminal operations, said that the terminal does not have to get a permit from City Hall because it is run by the local government unit.

“LGU man mi, di mi required mokuha og permit,” said Garcia, while adding that if what Osmeña has been trying to say is that the terminal has delayed payments, then they are willing to pay it since the capitol is very rich.

“For me, kung permit lang or shall we say, ‘amoroso’ lang, daghan kwarta ang Kapitolyo, bayran na namo,” he said.

But so far, apart from some City Hall personnel who came to the terminal since the other day to check on the business permits of the tenants at the CSBT, none bothered them asking for their permit yet, he said.

Garcia went to the terminal after spending his morning at the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center to meet with mini-bus operators to discuss his new policies for them. – Fred P. Languido, Rene U. Borromeo and Liv G. Campo/BRP   (FREEMAN NEWS)