The government has been pulling out all the stops to carry out its transport modernization plan, which includes a move to phase out old jeepney units and replace them with modern ones.
The reported phasing out of jeepneys fifteen years old and up did not sit well with jeepney drivers, operators, and transport groups who protested in front of the Land Transportation and Franchising Regulatory Board all the way to the DOTC office last January week.
Tomorrow (Jan 15) in “Tapatan ni Tunying,” Anthony Taberna sits down with a jeepney driver to find out how the proposal will affect their lives and primary source of livelihood.
Sixty-seven-year-old jeepney driver Rudy Bautista couldn’t help but be emotional when asked about the news. He said, “You will phase out all one million jeepneys in the Philippines? So one million drivers are going to lose their job? How are they going to provide for their family?”
Rudy, who tries his best to keep his 19-year-old jeepney in good condition, said it was only in recent years that he was able to spend for the maintenance of his jeepney, after his children graduated from college.
Commuter safety and carbon emission are the main considerations of the DOTC for pushing the jeepney modernization plan. Though nothing is cast in stone yet, are drivers and operators ready once the plan is implemented? How will this affect the life of jeepney drivers, commuters and the transport sector as a whole?
Know more about them in “Tapatan ni Tunying” tomorrow (Jan 15) night after “Bandila” on ABS-CBN. Catch it at an earlier time on DZMM TeleRadyo (SkyCable channel 26), 9:30PM. For updates, follow the programs social media accounts www.Twitter.com/TNTunying, www.Instagram.com/TNTunying, and www.facebook.com/TNTunying.
