By Liza Soriano
MANILA — Senator Grace Poe has expressed disappointment over the Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) failure to effectively implement the Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) Modernization Program.
“Throughout the past seven years, this committee has continuously urged the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to revisit the program while pleading for cooperation from the drivers-operators and commuters,” Poe said, referring to the Senate committee on public services which she chaired.
“Even in our previous hearings on the issue and on the program’s budget, DOTr promised to review the program. Unfortunately, we have yet to see any progress. It seems like the slogan of PUV Modernization is ‘You’ve been promised, but they still need to fulfill it,'” she added during a public hearing on Friday (21 June 2024).
Poe had previously filed Senate Bill No. 105 which advocates for a “just and humane” PUV Modernization Program (PUVMP), encompassing transitory assistance and services provided to operators, drivers, and other stakeholders.
The program mandates jeepney operators and drivers to form cooperatives or join existing ones that would operate fleets of modernized jeepneys purchased by these groups.
(el Amigo/mnm)
