Truckers hold ‘rest day’ to protest port policy

Truckers staged a “rest day” on Tuesday to protest the "no permit, no service" policy of the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) that they said could slow down the transportation of goods and trade facilitation in the country's ports.

According Manny Vargas’ “Balitanghali” report on Tuesday, the Confederation of Truckers Association of the Philippines (CTAP) held the protest caravan in the offices of the PPA and International Container Terminal Service Inc. up to the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) in Quezon City.

Lawyer Ryan Esponilla, representative from CTAP, said that so far the PPA has failed to listen to their grievances concerning the new policy.

He said delays in the transportation of goods could result in price increases as demand spikes ahead of Christmas.

Mary Zapata, president of CTAP, said the protest will continue until the authorities address their grievances.

GMA News Online sought comment from the PPA on the issue but has not yet replied as of posting time.

The PPA earlier implemented a “no permit, no service” policy for all truckers in ports nationwide to prevent colorum operators starting November 2.

The policy was in line with Memorandum Circular 19-2021, stating that truckers need to obtain a Certificate of Accreditation (CA) and Permit to Operate (PTO), otherwise they are not allowed to transact at port terminals.

The PPA, however, noted that several truckers still refuse to comply or get operating permits from the agency for still unknown reasons.—Richa Noriega/LDF, GMA News