Members of transport group MANIBELA join, for the first time, the larger multisectoral protest on Labor Day in Manila on May 1, a day after the deadline for franchise consolidation elapsed under the PUV modernization program. MANIBELA announced their own transport strike beginning tomorrow. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News

MANILA (UPDATED) -- Transport group Manibela will hold a transport strike beginning Thursday, according to the group's leader Mar Valbuena said on Wednesday.

Manibela's transport strike comes on the heels of a similar strike currently being held by PISTON. 

The consolidation deadline lapsed on April 30 but Valbuena said they are still hoping President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will heed their call to halt the PUV Modernization Program. 

"Importante, kahit isang oras, isang minuto, isang segundo na natitira na pwede itong bawiin ng Pangulo, lalaban kami. Hindi kami susuko at hinding-hindi kami mawawalan ng pag-asa," said Valbuena.

According to Valbuena, they are also wary of pronouncements coming from the Department of Transportation (DOTr) that unconsolidated jeepneys will still be allowed to ply their routes pending the formal revocation of their franchises.

"Hindi malinaw dahil ang LTO (Land Transportation Office) manghuhuli, ang LTFRB (Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board) hindi, ang DOTr hindi. Ano po ba ang tama? Ano po ba ang susundin namin? Alin po ba dito sa mga direktiba na ito ang nagsasabi ng totoo kasi baka mamaya trap po sa amin ito," he said.

READ: Transport groups join Labor Day protest

READ: Jeepney drivers join Labor Day march, to hold fresh transport strike

Manibela's transport strike comes on the heels of a similar strike being staged by PISTON.

Both groups joined other progressive groups for a rally in Manila on Labor Day but were blocked by authorities from going to Mendiola, a historic protest site near Malacañang.

But PISTON Deputy Secretary General Ruben Baylon said the group will keep pressing on by continuing to ply their routes even without going through consolidation.

"Iilan pa lang yung mga minibus. Halos at lahat ng mga tumatakbo na pampublikong sasakyan ay mga tradisyunal. Kaya nararapat lamang na ituloy ang biyahe upang sa ganoon ang mga kababayan nating mga manggagawa at iba't ibang sektor ay hindi ma-stranded sa kani-kanilang patutunguhan," said Baylon.

CONSOLIDATION FIGURES

Based on the latest data released by the agency, nearly 61 percent of jeepneys in Metro Manila have already consolidated.

Nationwide, the consolidation rate for all types of public utility vehicles has breached 80 percent, according to LTFRB Chairperson Teofilo Guadiz III.

This is higher than the government's initial target of 65 percent.

But Valbuena cast doubt on these figures, and urged the government to focus more on how many will be displaced by the modernization program.

"Ang bilis naman ng calculator niya, na nagco-consolidate pa lang hanggang alas otso, may datos na siya," he said.

"Hindi po natin tinitignan dito yung kung sino yung nag-consolidate. Ang gusto nating iparating sa Pangulo, ilan at sino yung mga mawawalan ng hanapbuhay. Yan dapat ang masolusyunan," added Valbuena.

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board has warned that jeepneys with unconsolidated franchises after April 30 will be considered as colorum or operating illegally. 

Franchise consolidation is the first phase of the PUVMP.

LTFRB Chair Teofilo Guadiz III said the agency may begin apprehending jeepneys with unconsolidated franchises by the second week of May, with corresponding penalties for the drivers and operators of these vehicles.

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