Duterte to DSWD, DILG: Look into jeepney drivers' complaints amid COVID-19 pandemic

President Rodrigo Duterte has tasked the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to look into the claims of jeepney drivers who did not receive cash assistance from the government amid the COVID-10 pandemic.

“There are complaints that there are some drivers who did not receive any assistance at all. I have directed the DSWD and the DILG to look into this,” Duterte said in his fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA).

The President then said that 4.3 million poor families benefited from the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, while 92.2 million received assistance under unconditional cash transfer program amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jeepneys have been prohibited from plying the roads since March 16 and have only been allowed to operate a week ago, albeit on very limited routes, in favor of modern public utility vehicles which resemble mini buses.

The government has been arguing that social distancing, which is required to prevent COVID-19 transmission, cannot be enforced inside a jeepney’s cramped space.

As a result, a number of jeepney drivers have been spotted begging for aid along streets, while some of their families have been forced to sleep inside their vehicles due to lack of money to pay for house rent.

Health Undersecretary Rosario Vergeire already said that individuals will not be at risk of getting COVID-19 as long as they wear masks and maintain distance from other persons when riding a vehicle regardless if it is air-conditioned or an open-air vehicle.

The Philippines has recorded 80,448 cases COVID-19 cases so far. Of this number, 26,110 have recovered while 1,932 died. This means that the number of active COVID-19 cases is at 52,406. —KBK/RSJ, GMA News