Hearing on P5 fare hike petition set Tuesday

Transport groups are optimistic that their petition to increase jeepney fares by P5 would be heard by government agencies this week, amid the successive increases in pump prices of petroleum products.

According to Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association of the Philippines (FEJODAP) Ricardo “Boy” Rebaño, the hearing for the fare hike petition before the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) is set on Tuesday, March 1, 2022.

“Mukhang magsisimula na po ‘yung hearing sa LTFRB para sa petition for fare increases na P5,” he said in a report by Bernadette Reyes on GMA’s “24 Oras Weekend Express” on Sunday.

“Halos ‘yung nagba-boundary na lang po ‘yung mga driver doon sa mga gasoline stations eh, dahil sa taas po ng presyo ng mga petroleum product na ‘yan,” he elaborated.

[It seems as though the hearings for the P5 fare increase will be heard by the LTFRB are going to start… Drivers are earning just close to their boundaries because of the high prices of petroleum products.]

Local pump prices are set to be increased anew on Tuesday, marking the ninth straight week of hikes.

Latest government data show that year-to-date adjustments stand at a total net increase of P8.75 per liter for gasoline, P10.85 per liter for diesel, and P9.55 per liter for kerosene as of February 22, 2022.

Pump prices have only been increased so far this year, following a net increase of P17.65 per liter for gasoline, P14.30 per liter for diesel, and P11.54 per liter for kerosene in 2021.

The Department of Energy (DOE) has repeatedly attributed the consecutive price hikes to the global supply constraints, exacerbated by the ongoing geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine. — Jon Viktor D. Cabuenas/BM, GMA News