The monopoly of the ruling class of big bureaucrat-comprador bourgeoisie such as the families of Villar, Sy, Aboitiz ang Pangilinan are the ones who will benefit from PUV modernization. This is along the neoliberal policy of the Philippine economy where the inutile reactionary government abandoned its full responsibility of basic social services like the transport sector.

Despite the responsibility of the government to ensure a safe, efficient, cheap and reliable transport service, it pushed for a devious “modernization” of PUVs as pretext of the Duterte’s reactionary government and Department of Transportation (DOTr) full hand over of the transport sector to big private corporations that will eradicate the livelihood of drivers, submerge them in debt and devastate small operators in the name of super profits.

The conditions of the transportation sector worsened still with the anti-poor policies, regulations and guidelines of the DOTr/LTFRB in favor of the monopoly of bus companies particularly here in Negros. Furthermore the unceasing hike of oil prices under the deregulation policy while prices of basic goods are skyrocketing. Yet, wages of sugar workers in cane fields and mills and other sectors have not increased.

The DOTr and LTFRB responds to the resounding clamor of workers and small operators with fascism. They threaten them with the revocation of driver’s licences and the operators’ franchises to quell and foil their legitimate struggle. Clearly, the Duterte regime is only for the big capitalist comprador bourgeoisie and land lords. The ardent voices and movement of the drivers, operators, federations and other democratic sectors is justified in fighting against any form of the anti-poor PUV “modernization”. The cause of the transportation sector will also be the cause of the exploited classes of workers, peasants, fisherfolk, urban poor, youth and students, professionals, businessmen, church people and other democratic forces.###