The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has issued a guideline in extending assistance to transport service entities (TSEs) struggling to pay the monthly amortization for modern jeepney units.
Acting LTFRB chairman, Atty. Greg Pua Jr., said the assistance program will start this week—and the guideline will ensure clear and smooth processes in ensuring that the government assistance will be extended quickly to the intended beneficiaries.
The support system covers modern jeepneys and UV Express nationwide, and the memorandum circular aims to standardize the administrative and operational framework for the implementation of the assistance.
The financial aid shall cover up to three months of vehicle amortization or operational costs. A monthly subsidy of P20,000 per unit per month shall be granted to eligible operators for eligible TSEs with existing arrears, outstanding loan obligations, or those facing the risk of default.
The objectives are to prevent asset foreclosure and credit default by providing direct cash flow support to meet monthly debt service obligations, and ensure operational continuity of their operations in the interest of the commuters, Pua stressed.
The fund may also be used to offset daily operational expenses, such as but not limited to fuel, maintenance and spare parts, garage and terminal rental and utilities.
Among the eligibilities to avail of the program is that the modern units should have Certificate of Public Convenience (CPC), with no pending legal proceedings, and with no records of serious rod safety offenses.
Pua said the LTFRB will make sure that the assistance program will be extended the soonest possible time and in the orderly manner.
“This program is proof that the PBBM administration is both proactive and sensitive in the concerns being raised by those in the public transport sector,” Pua said in a press release Sept. 13. “And we in the LTFRB commits to ensuring that this will be properly implemented.”
There is need to provide financial assistance to qualified TSEs in view of increasing fuel prices and other operational expenses that adversely affect public transport viability and in helping mitigate these costs, he added.
Pua said that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has directed the LTFRB to go all out in providing the necessary assistance to the transport sector, particularly those who supported the government’s Public Transportation Modernization Program (PTMP).
The PTMP is designed to further improve, modernize, and make the country’s public transportation system at par with other developed countries, in terms of services and environment friendly operations.
A large number of those in the transport sector supported the program and obtain modern jeepneys through a loan program that is subsidized by the national government. But recent developments in the Middle East, along with the series of adverse effects of bad weather condition, made it difficult for them to meet their obligation on monthly amortization. ||
