“Modern jeep” drivers and operators suffered hardship and distress after the Cordillera Basic Sectors Transport Cooperative or CBSTC closed in October. The Baguio city council refused to accredit or authorize the cooperative to operate. The coop plies the Trancoville and Aurora Hill route.

A Piston-Baguio statement reported that the cooperative lost accreditation because of poor management. It said the coop often suspended trips without public notice. It neglected finances, failed to submit proper documents, and violated its own rules. Its chairperson also face allegations of corruption.

CBSTC drivers complained of not receiving income from their shares in the cooperative. Banks repossessed 38 “modern jeep” units because the coop failed to pay its debts amounting to ₱69 million, which has already rose to ₱114 million with interest.

Fake modernization

Forced franchise consolidation and fake cooperatives such as CBSTC resulted from the Public Transport Modernization Program in Baguio. This did not bring modernization; instead, it accelerated the jeepney phase-out where many city drivers lost their livelihoods.

False modernization distressed passengers. With fewer jeeps operating, workers and students endured long queues during rush hour. Fares in minibuses that replaced traditional jeeps were also higher.

According to Piston-Baguio, “genuine cooperativism” is the answer to false modernization.

“Let us remember the JODA system or Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association that successfully developed the unity of drivers and operators before fake cooperatives were forced upon us,” it stated.

In the past, members freely contributed assistance according to their ability and received benefits according to their need. Joining the organization was not mandatory. There was democracy, and the JODA’s collective spirit was not easily broken, it said.

From 2024 to mid-2025, at least 38 cooperatives went bankrupt and failed to pay more than ₱5 billion debt. In August, failure of many bankrupt cooperatives prompted the Development Bank of the Philippines to completely stop issuing loans for the PTMP. In October, the LTFRB admitted fund mismanagement as a reason for the program’s failure.