Public snubs hearing on fare hike in Benguet

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines - Sectors invited to Thursday's hearing on the proposed fare increase in the Cordillera did not attend the meeting, prompting hearing officers of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to just require the parties involved to submit position papers. Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association in the Philippines (Fejodap) local president Perfecto Itliong Jr. said jeepney operators and drivers were not remiss in informing the public of their plans. He revealed that they would file a supplement to an earlier petition for a P1.25 increase for the next five kilometers, which will be amended instead to P1.50 for Benguet jeepneys. At the time the earlier petition was filed, diesel was sold at P40 per liter, while it is now sold at P45.53 per liter. The basis for the petition is not just on the increasing prices of fuel, but also on the increasing prices of spare parts. Earlier, Transportation Regional Director Federico Mandapat Jr. said the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) did not receive any complaint from the public regarding the provisional 50-centavo increase for the first four kilometers. Mandapat said the public may have accepted that fares would eventually have to increase. "Like passengers, drivers and operators also have families to feed," he said. - Sun.Star Baguio