Some jeepneys grounded, drivers look for other jobs amid skyrocketing fuel prices

With the country’s fuel prices hitting a new all-time high, some jeepney drivers in Metro Manila are now thinking of looking for other work in order to earn enough money to get by.

One of them is Felipe Laurilla, who—at 75 years old—is considering turning to  construction work to provide for his family. He currently earns P200 to P250 daily, not even enough to put food on the table in the next few days.

“Malamang titigil na rin kami sa pasada kasi wala na kikitain eh,” he said in Maki Pulido’s report on “24 Oras.”

(We will most probably stop driving because we have no revenue.)

Oil firms on Monday announced another round of pump price hikes to mark the second straight week of increases for diesel and kerosene. This resulted in fuel prices skyrocketing to nearly P100 per liter in several areas in the country.

The continuous uptick, Laurilla added, has also forced other drivers to retire their jeepneys.

Of the member drivers of their association in Quezon City, only 24 are now plying the roads—fewer than half of the previous 68. They are now even working in alternating schedules, decreasing the number of those who work up to only 12 drivers per day.

Transport group PISTON, for its part, expressed a similar sentiment saying 20 percent of their members have decided to abandon their jobs to either go home to their provinces or get employed as construction workers or as family and company drivers.

While motorists are reeling from the current prices, the Department of Energy (DoE) warned the increase might still persist due to the ban on oil supplies from Russia and the announced uptick in prices of fuel from Saudi Arabia.

“Itong tuloy-tuloy na pagtaas, may expectation po tayo na mangyayari’t mangyayari sa mga susunod na week. Wala tayong nakikitang event ngayon na siyang mago-offset noong push nitong mga event na ito na tuloy-tuloy na nagpapa-increase ng ating price,” DoE Director Rino Abad said.

(There’s an expectation that the price hike will continue in the next few weeks. We’re still not foreseeing an event that would offset these price increases.)

The Energy Department previously vowed fuel subsidies would be distributed among the sectors hard-hit by the price hike including drivers, farmers, and fisherfolk. The beneficiaries, however, stressed it may not be enough.

“Sigurado pinakamababa nyan P1,000 ang krudo. Sa P5,000 limang araw mo lang yun. Wala nang mangyayari sayo. Paano na sa susunod na araw?” Laurilla asked.

(I’m sure the lowest crude price would be at P1,000. If they’ll give us P5,000, that would be good for only five days. What will happen after?) — Sundy Locus/BM, GMA News