Senator Christopher “Bong” Go on Friday, June 10, urged both the current and incoming administration to work together to address issues stemming from rising fuel prices. He said it is necessary to implement measures to alleviate the plight of transport workers while ensuring that ordinary commuters will not be overburdened.

“Binabalanse ng ating gobyerno ang interes ng mga kababayan nating patuloy na kumakayod at naglilingkod sa sektor ng pampublikong transportasyon, kasabay ng sapat na pagprotekta sa kapakanan ng mga ordinaryong mamamayan sa kabila ng mga pagtaas sa presyo ng langis,” said Go in an earlier statement.

In an interview after personally distributing assistance to various sectoral groups in Governor Generoso, Davao Oriental, Go stressed that cooperation between the government and concerned sectors is necessary to avoid adding burden to Filipinos amid an ongoing pandemic and other crises the country is facing.

“Umaapela po ako, sana po ay pag-aralan muna ng mabuti at bigyan po muna rin natin ng tsansa ang bagong administrasyon na maimplementa ang mga plano nila (ngayong nasa transition tayo),” said Go.

“Sa ngayon naman po, nakapagbigay na po ng ayuda – fuel subsidy sa 180,000 drivers through LTFRB (Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board). Tulong po ito para sa kanila dahil sa pagtaas ng presyo,” he added.

Earlier, Go appealed to the concerned agencies to speed up the disbursement of the fuel subsidy to cover as many qualified beneficiaries as possible.

“This will help in keeping the transport sector afloat amid the crisis without overburdening the commuters,” the senator said.

Go explained that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has pushed commodity prices up but the Duterte Administration is doing everything it can to help transport workers and ordinary Filipinos deal with the situation.

“Tumaas po ang presyo dahil po ‘yan sa ongoing Russia and Ukraine conflict. Pero, ginagawa naman po ng Duterte Administration ang lahat para maibsan o mabawasan po ang paghihirap ng ating mga drivers,” he assured.

“At hintayin na lang po natin kung ano rin po ang plano ng next administration para sa ating mga drivers, para mabawasan po ‘yung hirap na dulot ng pagtaas ng presyo,” Go added.

He then appealed to the LTFRB to continue ensuring that the concerns of transport workers and commuters are taken into consideration. The LTFRB earlier approved a P1 provisional increase on the minimum fare of public utility jeepneys plying in Metro Manila, Region 3 and Region 4.

“Ang apela ko sa LTFRB, bagama’t kailangang maagapan ang masamang epekto ng mga pagtaas na ito sa kabuhayan ng mga PUJ drivers, kailangan ding siguraduhin na patas at pansamantala lamang ito para naman hindi lalong madagdagan ang pinapasang hirap ng ating mga kababayan lalo na ng mga ordinary commuters,” he said.