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Jeepney drivers wait for passengers along EDSA and Taft Avenue in Pasay City on March 12, 2025.
STAR / Ryan Baldemor
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Transportation (DOTr) will seek advice from economic managers on calls for a P1 jeepney fare hike to mitigate the impact of rising fuel prices caused largely by the outbreak of hostilities between Israel and Iran.
Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon said there is a need to consider the effects of a fare hike, which transport groups claimed would provide relief to jeepney drivers grappling with higher operational costs.
“We will talk about that because we need to strike a balance on the effects of a higher fare on our commuters. We need to study that and balance it carefully so we will consult our economic team on that so we can seek guidance,” Dizon told a Palace press briefing yesterday.
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has said that jeepney fares could go up by P1, but there would be no per-kilometer hike because such an adjustment would be burdensome to commuters.
Teofilo Guadiz III, LTFRB chairman, has raised the possibility of fare increase if international oil prices breach the $80 per barrel mark based on Dubai crude.
Asked for the DOTr’s stance on calls to suspend the excise and value added tax on fuel, Dizon said the matter is within the purview of the economic team.
“What I can say is the directive of the President is simple. If there are developments in other countries and in other parts of the world we cannot control and our countrymen, including the transport sector, are affected, the government has to act immediately,” the transport chief said.
“We have means and funds for it. For example, we have the fuel subsidy program,” he added.
Dizon said the government’s P2.5-billion fuel subsidy budget for this year remains intact. The subsidy would be distributed to agriculture and transport workers if the oil price breaches $80 per barrel. Dizon said oil prices have not reached the threshold, but concerned agencies are ready to distribute the subsidies if and when necessary.
In a related development, Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro disputed the claims of the Kabataan party-list that President Marcos is subservient to the dictates of corporations, when he allowed oil prices to increase and blocked wage hikes.
Castro said the prices of crude oil are dependent on global market forces. She added that under the law, the oil industry is deregulated.
“If we want to dictate the prices of crude oil, it would be better if Kabataan comes up with legislation on this. If there is such a law, it would be implemented by the executive department,” the Palace press officer said in Filipino.
Castro also clarified that Marcos is not blocking wage increases, noting that he is calling for pay adjustment every year.
“If they are asking for a P200 wage hike, that is up to Congress. We don’t want a leader who is a dictator, do we? We don’t want a leader who does not think. We do not want a leader who is just a puppet and we do not want a leader who only goes on vacation.” she said.
In a recent statement, Kabataan criticized Marcos for allegedly following the whims of huge corporations and called for the scrapping of the Oil Deregulation Law and the excise and value added taxes on oil.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), meanwhile, is working with manufacturers to keep prices of basic goods stable amid evolving geopolitical developments.
