A taxi driver stands by his cab while awaiting his turn to move out of his operator’s garage.
EVEN as more than 136,000 valid franchise holders of public utility jeepneys (PUJ) nationwide are to receive a one-time fuel subsidy per vehicle, other public utility drivers (PUDs) from buses and taxis to tricycles are asking government to likewise give them assistance so they can cope with soaring fuel prices.
In an official announcement, the Department of Transportation (DoTr) disclosed that they will be using the P1-billion allocation from the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC), the DoTr and Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to immediately start the distribution of the ‘Pantawid Pasada Program’ (PPP) fuel cards that have been loaded with P7,200 credits to beneficiaries.
The DoTr, however, clarified that jeepney drivers can only use their PPP cards to purchase fuel at the participating petroleum retail outlets or gasoline stations and for them to use the card in purchasing other products aside from fuel “would automatically disqualify the card owner” from the program.
This is not the first time that the government has offered fuel subsidies to distressed transport workers since the PPP program was initially implemented in 2018 and 2019 in compliance with the provisions of Republic Act No. 10963 or the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act.
According to LTFRB National Capital Region director Zona Tamayo, the fuel subsidy would be directly distributed to some 85,000 beneficiaries with valid and existing PPP cards issued by the Land Bank of the Philippines.
“They can immediately redeem their fuel subsidy from branches of nine participating gas companies. Landbank has downloaded the fuel subsidy to the PPP cards of 78,000 beneficiaries as of Tuesday but for those without PPP cards, the fuel subsidy would be deposited to the beneficiaries’ Landbank accounts once opened,” Tamayo explained.
(Photo: PhilNews.ph)
