By Lenie Lectura & Butch Fernandez
Alawmaker on Monday urged the Philippine National Oil Co.-Exploration Corp. (PNOC-EC) Board to shelve its plan to import some P2 billion worth of diesel from Singapore, saying this may not be the best solution to alleviate the plight of public- utility jeepney (PUJ) drivers struggling to cope with rising fuel prices.
“I understand that we have a common goal and that is to help ease the burden of our jeepney drivers, who are actually one of the most vulnerable sectors to fluctuations in pump prices,” Senate Energy Committee head Sherwin T. Gatchalian said.
He added: “However, I do not believe that the PNOC-EC plan is the best solution to the problem since there is no guarantee that the cheap fuel will reach the PUJ drivers.”
To illustrate his point, the senator explained that 179,852 legitimate PUJ franchise holders nationwide need at least 161.1 million liters of diesel a month to fuel their operations. However, PNOC-EC said it plans to import 50,000 MT per month, which is only equivalent to 50 million liters of diesel or just over 31 percent of the monthly demand for diesel.
Gatchalian also contended that there is no assurance that PUJ drivers will be able to get hold of the cheap diesel since not all gasoline stations will participate in the program. According to PNOC-EC, the distribution of the imported fuel shall only be done “through smaller oil companies and other bulk buyers.” Data from the Department of Energy show that independent oil players operate only 3,051 of the total 8,630 gas stations nationwide.
“It appears that a lot more PUJ drivers will be on the losing deal with the implementation of this plan because not everyone could be able avail [themselves] of cheap diesel under the program. Let’s also consider the limitation of monitoring the so-called leakage or the non-qualified beneficiaries in the gasoline stations. Let’s undertake a deeper study if this program will truly benefit the jeepney drivers,” he said in Filipino.
Instead of engaging in the direct importation of cheap diesel, Gatchalian said the government should step up its efforts to fully implement the Pantawid Pasada Program.
“The Department of Energy and PNOC-EC should abandon the plan to engage in the direct importation of diesel and instead focus their energy and resources on a targeted system, such the Pantawid Pasada, which will truly benefit our PUJ drivers,” Gatchalian said.
He vowed to fight for the P20,000 cash aid for jeepney drivers under the Pantawid Pasada Program for 2019, as government economic managers said they might reduce it to P10,000, amid the looming fuel tax hike suspension.