Bayani Fernando wants colorum vehicles set on fire

Former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chair and now Marikina City Representative Bayani Fernando has suggested a measure to finally wipe colorum vehicles out of roads: Set them on fire.

During a meeting of the House Committee on Metro Manila Development which talked about the proposed transport network vehicle services (TNVS) franchise for additional 15,000 units, Nicanor Escalante, president of the Hype Transport Systems accused Grab Philippines of "monopolizing" the TNVS market.

He said that they have filed a petition before the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) against Grab for supposedly using about 22,000 colorum vehicles, which the latter supposedly admitted in one of the meetings of the House Committee on Transportation.

"We, as a TNC (transport network company), never accept any operator that cannot show us at least a PA (provisional authority) or a CPC (certificate of public convenience). So we question again the fact that why is Grab being allowed to do this. And there is a penalty for this, P120,000 per vehicle per day," Escalante said.

"So at the moment, it is Grab that is monopolizing the market at the expense of all the Filipino TNCs including ours," he added.

The supposed use of colorum vehicles as TNVS irked Fernando, especially after the LTFRB said that they were only able to catch 19 of these illegally-used vehicles.

"It puts into question the performance of the LTFRB. We should not let this pass just like that," Fernando said.

Fernando said that in order to get rid of these colorum vehicles once and for all, the LTFRB should start with a clean slate and approve the franchise for all transport companies. But after that, a "draconian" measure should be imposed.

"Para matigil na lahat ang colorum, bigyan na muna ang lahat. And that will give us political reason to pass a law that will impose that draconian measure. Kapag nahuli kang colorum, wala na yun, sunog," he said.

"Ni hindi pipiyesahin. Kapag pinyesa mo babalik pa ulit ang piyesa na yun sa kalye. Sunog na para hindi na talaga pakikinabangan. And in front of everybody so everybody will see," he added.

Fernando said the LTFRB should "start anew" in order to resolve the problem with colorum vehicles.

"It's overburdened by certain things, so many problems that you have, talagang beyond you na to resolve. So we start with a clean slate muna," he said.

As for the issue with Grab, Negros Oriental Representative Arnolfo Teves told Escalante to write him about it and he will help launch an investigation on it.

Escalante said he would provide Teves with the records and other documents on the matter. —LDF, GMA News