Protesters: LRT, MRT fare hike a 'great train robbery'

UPDATED 4:30 p.m. - A group opposing the proposed Light Rail Transit (LRT) and Metro Rail Transit (MRT) fare hike said the move was a "great train robbery." The militant umbrella group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) branded the proposed 56 percent fare hike as a "great train robbery" because it will have "far-reaching effects on the pockets of some 1.2 million combined LRT and MRT commuters." "We see no justification for this utterly callous imposition," Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes Jr. said. On Tuesday, the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) announced the approval of fare hikes for the LRT-1 and LRT-2, and the Metro Rail Transit (MRT-3). LRT Authority spokesman Hernando Cabrera said the fare hikes will raise the maximum fare for LRT-1 (Roosevelt in Quezon City to Baclaran in southern Metro Manila) from the present P20 to P30; and LRT-2 (Santolan to Recto in Manila) from P15 to P25. However, Cabrera said the fare hike is not yet final and may be subject to public consultations in February. 'Service, not business' On Tuesday, Radio dzBB's Allan Gatus reported that members of the Riles Laan sa Sambayanan Network (RILES), a group opposing the fare hikes, picketed the MRT station at the North Avenue in Quezon City. RILES members gathered the signatures of people who are opposed to the fare hike, and distributed stickers that read "Serbisyo hindi Negosyo (Service, not Business)." According to the dzBB report, similar pickets were planned on the same day at the LRT-1 station at Monumento in Caloocan City and the LRT-2 station at C.M. Recto Avenue in Manila. Appeal for calm In Malacañang, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte appealed for calm from protesters. "We appeal for calm because alam niyo naman po na imbis po na gradual o dahan-dahan yung pagkayat po ng pamasahe sa LRT at sa MRT nakita naman po natin na matagal itong napigil (We appeal for calm because as you can see gradual hikes in the LRT and MRT fares were long held off)," she said in a press briefing on Wednesday. The government has long been subsidizing LRT and MRT fare operations, which is why fares were not increased for years. Valte said the reasons for the fare hike should be understood, adding that "in the end it aims to provide a better service." Sign of Aquino's political will Meanwhile, Roel Landingin of Newsbreak said investors see the proposed LRT, MRT fare hikes as a sign of Aquino's political will. The move is aimed at reducing costly state subsidies that reached P13.85 billion last year, according to the Department of Transportation and Communication. "The fare hike, the first since 2003, is welcomed by investors who see it as a demonstration of President Aquino’s political will to carry out unpopular measures," Landingin wrote in a story published by GMANews.TV on Wednesday. However, Landingin said the hike "is opposed by others who worry it will make commuting more costly for students and low-income workers, who make up bulk of the train systems’ more than a million daily users." Passing the debt The militant group Bayan said it was unacceptable for the government to simply pass on the debt burdens of the MRT to consumers. “In its haste to pay-off onerous debts, government has chosen to burden consumers instead of finding ways to rectify previous wrongs," Reyes said in a statement published on the Bayan website on Wednesday. "Train systems perform a valuable public service and to some extent it is acceptable that they loose money. This has been the case for many passenger train systems throughout the world. They require government subsidy because of the important public function they perform," Reyes said. “Government is saying that the MRT is losing money and that the government is heavily indebted. This should not have been the case had the original contracts not contained provisions that guaranteed private debts and made government assume commercial risks of the MRT operations," he added. The original MRT contract made government guarantee the private contractors a 15% yearly return on investment. Reyes said the original contract was grossly disadvantageous to government and the taxpayers. Filipino taxpayers are now being forced to shoulder the burden of the original flawed contract, Reyes said. "This is clearly an injustice," he added. “The Aquino (administration) probably thinks it can use its alleged high approval ratings to get away with this kind of great train robbery. Well it is sorely mistaken. The public will oppose this unjust imposition," Reyes said. – with Jam Sisante, VVP, GMANews.TV