Vice-presidential aspirant Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan urged the government to suspend the program to replace 15-year-old jeepneys as drivers and operators are still reeling from the Covid-19 lockdowns the almost-weekly oil price hikes.

"Ipagpaliban muna ang pagpapalit ng lumang dyip. Hirap na hirap na ang ating mga tsuper at opereytor (Postpone the replacement of old jeepneys. Our drivers and operators are suffering already)," he said Monday, March 7.

"'Di pa nga nakakabawi dahil wala o kulang ang pasahero noong lockdown. Ngayon naman, sunod-sunod ang pagtaas ng presyo ng krudo (They haven't even made up for their losses yet because of their passengers during the lockdown were few to none and now the price of oil has been increasing weekly)," he added.

The Senator said jeepney drivers and operators should not be stopped from making a living by phasing out old jeepney units.

"Hayaan muna nating makabawi sa sunod-sunod na mga krisis ang ating mga transportation frontliners (Let's give our transportation frontliners the time to make up for the crises)," he said.

Pangilinan supports the position of his presidential candidate Vice President Leni Robredo on the issue. Robredo said that forcing the consolidation of PUV (public utility vehicle) operators, the use of common terminals, and the mandatory upgrading of fleets of jeepneys should be put on hold.

For his part, Pangilinan welcomed the promise of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to hasten the release of the government's fuel subsidy to operators and drivers of public utility vehicles (PUVs).

Pangilinan has called for the release of this fuel subsidy to ease the effects of the continuing oil price hikes.

The LTFRB explained that PUV drivers would receive the P6,500 fuel subsidy fund through Pantawid Pasada cards that the Landbank will issue. The drivers will present these cards to participating gas stations to purchase fuel.

The LTFRB will hear the proposed P3 to P5 fare hike increase tomorrow, March 8.

'Lift excise tax'

Meanwhile, Senator Risa Hontiveros said the anticipated harsh impact of the impending big-time oil price hike on consumers this week could only be mitigated by lifting the excise tax imposed on oil products under the TRAIN Law.

Hontiveros made the call after oil companies during the weekend announced a possible oil price hike this week ranging from P5.30-P5.50/L for diesel, P3.60-P3.80/L for gasoline, and P4.00-P4.10 for kerosene due to the volatility of oil prices in the world market amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

She added that oil, being a socially sensitive product, remains one of the significant sources of energy in the country, especially for transportation. The country consumes some 400,000 barrels of oil every day, according to statistics.

It can be recalled that Hontiveros, who is seeking reelection, was the lone dissenter in the Senate when the TRAIN law was passed.

"Ang pinakamalaking pangamba ko noong tinutulan ko ito ay ang maaring mangyari sakaling patawan ng excise tax ang mga produktong petrolyo na hindi natin kontrolado ang galaw ng presyo (My biggest concern when I opposed the measure was what can happen if we impose excise tax on petroleum products, the price of which we cannot control)," she said.

Hontiveros said the only way to insulate the people from the heavy impact of unrelenting oil price hikes is to lift the excise tax on these products.

She added that other than the domino effect of oil price hikes on other products, one sector hit directly by the imposition of excise tax on oil is the electricity rates, especially in off-grid islands where power comes mainly from diesel-run generators of the National Power Corporation (NPC).