Mandaue-Cebu PUJ drivers ask city to release impounded PUJs

Drivers and operators of public utility jeepneys, plying the Mandaue-Cebu route, have requested the Cebu City government to release the over 70 PUJs that the City Traffic Operations Management had impounded for violations of a traffic ordinance.

The Nagkahiusang Drayber sa Sugbo, through their president Anthony Pogado, sent to the city council a 2-page position paper on the matter and also urged the the city to restore their original 21-B and 22-B routes.

Cebu City, through Ordinance No. 1837, banned PUJs of these routes from taking the streets of the downtown part of the city, and must load and unload passengers only at designated terminals.

The ordinance mandates that PUJs, of the Mandaue-Jones route, should stop at the Ayala Center-Cebu terminal while those, of the Mandaue-Manalili route, will be limited only to the SM City terminal at the north reclamation area.

Mayor Tomas Osmeña previously directed Citom to enforce also City Ordinance No. 2072, which authorizes it to impound PUJs that violates C.O. 1837 on third offense.

The apprehension and the impounding of violating PUJs stirred a controversial row between the PUJs' drivers and the city government.

The drivers earlier tried a compromise and asked that Citom may allow some PUJs to enter the city, based on the last number of the PUJ plates. The mayor however rejected this.

"Dakong kalapasan sa tawhanong katungod nga manginabuhi ug magpakabuhi ang pagtuman og usa ka balaod o ordinansa nga nagtumong sa paghikaw ug pagdili sa panginabuhian sa katawhan," Pogado said.

Pogado even surmised that the motive of the PUJ ban is to prepare the path for the planned replacement of PUJs with buses that would ply the city streets in the future.

"Tataw nga dili tinguha sa syudad sa Sugbo ang pag-decongest sa Jones Avenue, ang klaro tumong sa arbitraryong pag-imposar sa ordinansa mao ang pagwagtang sa mga PUJ ug pulihan sa mga bus," Pogado said.

Nadsu however welcome the mayor's idea and they are even open to it but they said that drivers and jeepney operators should be consulted first about it. The mayor should also spend enough time to study the proposal carefully, they said. - Garry B. Lao