00:22Thank you so much for joining us.
00:36Good afternoon and welcome to Beyond the Headlines. I'm DJ Moises.
00:44For the third time, Cebu drivers braved the heat and poor air quality in Metro Cebu to continue airing their
00:52voices on the increasing fuel in the country affecting drivers, commuters, and the economy.
00:58Piston or Pagkakaisa ng Mga Samahanang Super at Operator Nationwide, Cebu President Greg Perez said today that the transport sector
01:07will continue its strike until the government delivers concrete action on the fuel prices, stressing that drivers will not stop
01:15without a sufficient response.
01:17Piston, Cebu, and allied groups staged their third transport strike holding coordinated protests at key choke points before converging on
01:28Colon Street.
01:29Piston said recent fuel price rollbacks are not enough to offset earlier increases, leaving drivers and the public still burdened
01:37by high costs of goods and services.
01:40The group said that 5,000 aid or the 5,000 peso aid is only a band-aid solution, urging
01:47fuel price cuts, tax removal, fare hikes, and broader reforms to address the impact of rising oil prices on drivers,
01:55commuters, and the economy.
01:57The group also opposed the public utility vehicle modernization program, particularly the consolidation requirement, saying it could push small operators
02:06into debt and lead to job losses.
02:10Drivers participating in the strike operates across Cebu City, Mandawe, and Lapu-Lapu City, affecting key routes including Talamban, Guadalupe,
02:20and Labangon.
02:20In response, local government units prepared contingency measures including deploying buses and vehicles to assist commuters affected by the strike.
02:30So we tried to get the opinion also and the views coming from Piston today, but for some reason they
02:37were not able to reach them.
02:39So in today's Beyond the Headlines, we will just be giving a few comments.
02:45So as we all have already experienced by now, once the price of fuel or petroleum products would go up,
02:56this would impact logistics.
02:57And if it impacts logistics, then they will also impact prices downstream.
03:04So today, nanay kanang nigawas nga news coming from the Department of Energy that there's a kanang rollback of oil
03:13price.
03:13For gasoline, there's a decrease by 3.41 pesos.
03:19For diesel, there's a decrease of 24.94 pesos.
03:23And then for kerosene, there's a decrease of 2 pesos.
03:25But if we are to look at the aid that these decreases would do, gasoline remains approaching 100 or even
03:36just above 100.
03:38And then ang diesel, which is widely used when we transport and when we operate whatever kanang manufacturing facilities we
03:47have, remains still close to 150 pesos.
03:51So taas pagit-gihapon siya.
03:52So ang question ginato here is we already know that the Republic Act 1-2316 was already signed into law
04:02as early as March 25, 2026.
04:06And this is supposed to allow the Philippine president to suspend or reduce excise tax on petroleum products for up
04:15to 3 months when Dubai crude exceeds $80 per barrel.
04:21So karoon, ang question na ito is nanamanggitaan yung situation, what's exactly keeping the president from doing something like removing
04:32excise tax?
04:33Kanang dagahan mangkaid ka ng mga economist perspective in terms of why this should be done.
04:39And I think they are still in the drawing board.
04:42And supposedly the good thing about this one, it's because it's a conditional removal.
04:47And that's even the reason why they did not sign a separate law.
04:52They just allowed the president to have emergency powers so that the president would be able to play around the
04:59figures.
05:00Reduce by how much or remove completely.
05:04So that's why it's not even very specific to give the Philippine president the flexibility to move around.
05:10But the question here actually is why is little or no significant that's being done here?
05:16In the last interview that we had with operators, fuel used to be around 40-50% of their operational
05:25costs.
05:25But now it's already running 80-90%.
05:27So what is there left for them to have sufficient margin for them to be able to support their cost
05:38of living?
05:39So it's not very surprising that we now have the third strike from piston to already push the government to
05:48do something about this one.
05:50Now the other thing also that we need to see, I also, at least on a personal note,
05:56I also understand that if they were given 5,000 pesos subsidy, that's not really enough.
06:04Isara na siya katubil and then that's already it.
06:08So I think this is really a high time for the Department of Energy or the Philippine government to find
06:16better sustainable means.
06:18In my view, it actually looked like we are still hoping for the best, which when I'm referring to the
06:24Middle East tension.
06:26But in my view also, that's not the best way for us exactly to react in a situation like this.
06:32Because for a Middle East tension where we source 98% of our fuel supply, it matters actually that while
06:42we hope for the best, but we prepare for the worst.
06:45So now, I'd also like to remind everyone just in case that there was a pronouncement also that was given
06:54by Secretary Roque
06:56and specifying that the Department of Trade and Industry in partnership with the Philippine Supermarket Association
07:07announced a commitment from member supermarkets to maintain their current prices of basic necessities and prime commodities.
07:14But the deadline that was set here is April 30 and it's already April 21.
07:21So that's another potential strain also that the consumers will be facing once we go beyond April 30.
07:29So what we need here actually is for us to have deeper solutions and for the Philippine government to come
07:40up with consolidated efforts
07:42that will not just bring kind of ayuda type of relief, but something that's also sustainable.
07:48Because again, 98% of our source of fuel is from the Middle East.
07:55And if this tension will continue, its impact will be felt not just in fuel prices, but also food and
08:05other necessities downstream.
08:08So today, drivers took to the streets for the third time because working is no longer enough.
08:15Beyond the headlines, it's a reminder that when systems fail to adjust, people are forced.
08:22And until something changes, the engines may keep running, but the pressure will only build.
08:28I'm DJ Moises.
08:30This has been Beyond the Headlines.
08:32Good afternoon.
08:32Good afternoon.
09:03Good afternoon.
09:05Good afternoon.
09:07Good afternoon.
09:10Good afternoon.
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