Militant drivers go on strike in south Luzon

Militant transport groups began Monday morning a one-day transport strike in parts of Southern Luzon, which they admitted may not be effective due to bad timing of sorts. The Pinagkaisang Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston) said its chapters in Laguna, Batangas and Quezon took part in the strike. "When we planned this, President Arroyo had not yet declared May 3 a holiday. So the effect of the strike may be minimal," Piston secretary general George San Mateo said in Filipino in an interview on dwIZ radio.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo had declared Monday a holiday to mark Labor Day, which fell on a Saturday. But San Mateo said they could not move the date of the strike as transport leaders in the Southern Luzon region spent much time planning it. San Mateo said they expect the transport strike to affect routes in Laguna (Calamba, Sta. Rosa, San Pablo and Biñan); Batangas; and Lucena City in Quezon. The strike aims to protest the overpricing of oil products and reiterate its demand to junk the Oil Deregulation Law. It also aims to pressure the big oil players — Chevron, Shell and Petron — to implement a substantial cut in the prices of petroleum products during rollbacks. — RSJ, GMANews.TV