Piston all set for transport strike

Leaders of militant transport groups and their allied organizations vowed to paralyze Metro Manila and key cities in the provinces with their planned transport strike tomorrow.

"Wala nang atrasan ito (There's no turning back)," Medardo Roda, chairman of the Pinag-isang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston), said yesterday.

Piston will be joined by cause-oriented groups Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, Kilusang Mayo Uno and Kontra Kartel. The groups are calling for the scrapping of the proposed road user's tax and the rollback of oil prices.

Organizers vowed to paralyze at least 24 major routes in 15 cities and towns in Metro Manila. "There will be marches and demonstrations nationwide. We want to show President Estrada that the people are already fed up with his promises," Teodoro Casiño, Bayan secretary general, said.

He said the transport strike intends to affect major routes in Quezon City, Manila, Pasay City, Makati City, Caloocan City, Pasig City, Parañaque City and Valenzuela.

Other drivers from Laguna, Rizal, Bulacan, Batangas, Cavite, Bicol, Cebu, Bohol, Negros and Southern Mindanao have pledged to join tomorrow's strike, according to Roda.

Roda, however, vowed to make their protest actions peaceful and within the rule of law. "I have already formed marshals to look at the conduct of the strike," he added.

Roda said he has received assurances from drivers and operators of FX (mega) and regular taxis that they will also join the strike.

The planned transport strike last March 20 of the moderate transport group Federation of Jeepney Owners and Drivers Associations of the Philippines led by its president, Romualdo Maranan, fizzled out after President Estrada assured Fedjodap leaders that he would not sign the road tax.

Meanwhile, the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) is ready for any untoward incident that may happen during tomorrow's mass action.

In a press conference at Camp Crame yesterday, acting national police chief Director Reynaldo Wycoco said that 6,000 policemen of the total NCRPO strength of 14,000 will be deployed around the metropolis.

Wycoco said the deployed policemen will be sent on patrol, conduct civil disturbance management, and escort public utility vehicles that may be targets of harassment by strikers.

According to Wycoco, strikers will not be arrested and the protest action will be respected by police for as long as the protest remains peaceful and orderly.

"We will tolerate the transport strike for as long as it remains within the bounds of the law. They (protesters) will be arrested if they begin harassing those who will not join them," he said.

Wycoco added that he has already given police field commanders a list of laws that protesters may likely violate such as alarm and scandal, vandalism and inciting to sedition.

"We will definitely apply the laws on hooliganism and vandalism if they violate these laws," the soft-spoken Wycoco said.

The NCRPO under director Chief Superintendent Edgar Aglipay will also deploy buses with police escorts at various areas in the metropolis to ferry stranded commuters.

Some of these critical areas where the buses will be fielded are in Manila, Malabon, Caloocan and Makati.

On the other hand, Wycoco assured that Marines who are now assisting the PNP conduct police visibility measures will not be used in conducting civil disturbance management.

"The Marines will not take part in civil disturbance management. This will remain a purely police action. There is no general breakdown of peace and order. We are just preparing for any eventuality," Wycoco said.

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) warned that public transport operators who join tomorrow's strike may face possible revocation of their franchise.

LTFRB chairman Dante Lantin said yesterday that it was stipulated in the contract-franchise of these operators that they could not join any activity that may inconvenience the public.

"The operation of public utility vehicles is supposed to be public service-oriented. It will be a violation of their contracts to join such a mass action," he stressed.

He urged the public to report to the Board plate numbers of vehicles that refused to operate.

"But there is a catch here. Operators usually reason out that strikers have coerced them into joining the protest action. They were threatened that their vehicles would be stoned or burned. This needs a thorough investigation by the LTFRB," he said.

Officials of the Department of Transportation and Communications, Metro Manila Development Authority and PNP-Traffic Management Group have already mapped out contingency plans to soften the impact of the strike.

Aside from the oil deregulation law and the road tax, protesters are asking that Executive Order No. 197 also be scrapped. EO 197 seeks to increase service fees in government vehicles by 50 percent. --With Mike Frialde, Sheila Crisostomo