Massive strikes planned in Central Luzon

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO — After teachers and government employees announced that they are staging massive protest actions tomorrow, public transport leaders in Central Luzon said they are also holding a region wide transport strike on the same day to press for similar demands.

"We expect transport paralysis in various parts of Central Luzon, particularly in Bulacan, Pampanga, Tarlac and Zambales," Waldy Santos, spokesperson of the Pinagkaisang Samahan ng Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (PISTON) in Central Luzon told The Star yesterday.

He said most of those expected to join the transport strike are jeepney drivers.An estimated 60,000 jeepneys ply the routes in the region.

As of yesterday afternoon, PISTON officials were still negotiating with other transport leaders in northern and southern Luzon provinces for their commitment to join Wednesday’s protest action.

Santos said public transport leaders from Pangasinan and Laguna said they will support the strike.

The transport strike will coincide with the "All Government Employees National Day of Protest" announced over the weekend by an umbrella group called Public Sector Employees Forum (PSEF) composed of leaders representing 46,000 public school teachers and 30,000 employees of the government in Central Luzon.

Classes throughout the region are expected to be disrupted as the teachers join the protest moves.

"Our demands are similar. We are protesting the high toll rates at the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and the rise in the cost of fuel. We also want the abrogation of the Oil Deregulation Law, a P125 across-the-board increase in workers’ wages, and a P3,000 across-the-board pay hike for public school teachers and other government employees," Santos said.

"There will be "Tigil-Pasada" for a limited period in Bataan and Nueva Ecija to be capped in the afternoon by protest rallies," he added.

The transport strike is expected to be severely felt in Pampanga as jeepney association leaders from Angeles, Mabalacat, San Fernando, Guagua, Sta. Ana, Lubao and Floridablanca already committed not to ply regular routes. Tricycle drivers associations in various parts of the province are also expected to join the strike.

In Bulacan, a multi-sectoral protest action is expected to mobilize at least 20,000 people to press for issues affecting the country.

In a press conference held in Malolos yesterday, Dory Mendoza of the militant group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, said more than 70 transport groups, representing at least 15,000 members agreed to join "Tigil-Pasada."

The Baliuag Alliance of Transport Association, for its part said, it would call for the scrapping of the oil deregulation law, and protest the new toll rates at NLEX. — With James Mananghaya