DOTr, MMDA: Day 1 of transport strike fizzles out By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan
& Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco @claudethmc3
T THE WORLD ›› A8
RUSSIAN SHELLING HITS UKRAINIAN TOWN AS BAKHMUT BATTLE RAGES
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HE first day of the weeklong transport strike had little impact on the economy, according to the chief of the Department of Transportation (DOTr), noting that only a handful of drivers and operators joined the protest. Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said “only a few” were part of the first day of the jeepney strike, which
was called to highlight objections to the PUV modernization program. “Based on what we see, the impact is very minimal. Reports from Regions 9, 10, 11, and 12, showed that no one joined the strike. Here in Metro Manila, only a few joined. In Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, the operations were normal,” he said. Manibela and Piston led a supposedly weeklong strike in protest against the government’s Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP). When asked if the DOTr is keen on
having the franchises of those who joined the strike revoked, Bautista said he is not totally in favor of that. “I don’t think we will, but we will review the policy and there is due process. There has to be a hearing and they must explain who joined and explain why they didn’t ply the routes. We’ll see to it that there is ample discussion and dialogue,” he said.
MMDA report
A SIMILAR assessment was made by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), which said the
start of the weeklong nationwide strike on Monday did not cripple jeepney routes in the metropolis. MMDA acting Chairman Romando Artes described the traffic situation in the metropolis as “normal.” “It appears that their plans did not materialize fully,” Artes said, partly in Filipino, in a press conference also attended by representatives from the Department of Transportation, Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board and the National Capital Region Police Office. See “DOTr,” A2
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Tuesday, March 7, 2023 Vol. 18 No. 143
BULK CASH SMUGGLING
COMMUTERS board a truck provided by the local government of Parañaque to help ferry stranded passengers as the planned weeklong transport strike begins on Monday, March 6, 2023, in protest against the government’s PUV Modernization Program. (Right) Militant groups from Gabriela Youth, Piston and Migrante stage a protest rally at Mendiola in Manila opposing the phaseout of the country’s iconic jeepneys. NONIE REYES/ROY DOMINGO
A
By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz
@joveemarie
S the Philippines was once again placed in the gray list by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the House Committee on Ways and Means on Monday created a technical working group (TWG) to further study the proposal penalizing the smuggling of foreign currency and other monetary instruments in bulk into or out of the Philippines. As of February 24, 2023, Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda, principal author of the proposal, said the FATF has kept the Philippines in the gray list, or “Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring.” “Other than Myanmar, which is in the ‘black list,’ we are the only country in ASEAN in the gray list,” said Salceda during the hearing of his committee on his House Bill 374 and Rep. Alex Colada’s House Bill 3254. Salceda’s proposal defines bulk cash smug gling as physically transpor ting or transfer r ing foreign currency and/or foreign currency-denominated bearer monetar y instr uments in an amount that exceeds $200,000 or its equivalent into and out of the Philippines. Under the proposal, bulk cash
smuggling also includes concealment and transport of or attempt to transport foreign currency and/or foreign currency-denominated bearer monetary instruments in excess of $10,000 or its equivalent in other foreign currency into and out of the Philippines, with the intent to evade the currency declaration requirement or to make a false declaration. “Bulk cash smuggling is suspected to be used for money laundering or terrorist financing. In the Philippines, bulk cash smuggling often involves inbound transport of large amounts of foreign currency, often undetected, or if detected, often made without apprehension or consequence,” he added.
70% OF CHILDREN ALREADY WORKING IN 11 REGIONS–PSA By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario
M
AJORITY or over 70 percent of children in 11 regions nationwide were already working in 2021, according to data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). PSA data also showed six of these regions have poverty rates of above the national average as of 2021. Four of these regions with high poverty rates and children working also saw an increase in poverty rates in 2021. In 2021, the total number of working children considered engaged in child labor was estimated at 935,000. This was higher than the reported working children engaged in child labor in 2020 at 597,000. “Child labor includes: hazardous work [hazardous child labor] which encompasses undesirable activities or work done in a hazardous environment [as identified in DOLE Order No. 04 (1999) on ‘Hazardous work and activities to persons below 18 years of age’],” PSA explained. “[This also includes] work done for long hours of more than 40 hours and/or night time or the entire day by chil-
dren in ages 15 to 17 years and those classified as other child labor, that is, work by children below 15 years of age in excess of the allowable work hours or less than 20 hours,” it added. Based on the PSA, children include Filipinos aged 5 years old to 17 years old. The Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) had the highest proportion of children working at 81.7 percent in 2021. The other regions with majority of children worked included Region I (Ilocos Region); Region II (Cagayan Valley); Region III (Central Luzon); Mimaropa Region; Region VII (Central Visayas); Region IX (Zamboanga Peninsula); Region X (Northern Mindanao); Region XI (Davao Region); Region XII (Soccsksargen); and Region XIII (Caraga). The six regions that had a high proportion of children working and had higher poverty rates than the national average were Mimaropa; Central Visayas; Zamboanga Peninsula; Northern Mindanao; Soccsksargen; and Caraga. The PSA data showed 75.1 percent of children in Mimaropa worked and the region had a poverty incidence rate of 20.8 percent.
Oil spill can set back tourism recovery of Mimaropa–DOT By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror
T
HE oil spill in Oriental Mindoro will likely affect several tourism activities in the province and the Mimaropa region, which will again deprive stakeholders of their livelihood. Formerly the Southern Tagalog region, Mimaropa is composed of Mindoro Ori-
ental and Occidental, Marinduque, Romblon, and Palawan. In a news statement, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco said, “The Department of Tourism [DOT] notes with seriousness the grave impact of the oil spill on the tourism industry, including disruptions in the livelihood of the affected communities, tourism-dependent businesses, and recreational activities.” Continued on A2
See “70%,” A2
See “Solon,” A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 54.8330 n JAPAN 0.4032 n UK 65.9422 n HK 6.9856 n CHINA 7.9451 n SINGAPORE 40.7741 n AUSTRALIA 36.9794 n EU 58.2491 n KOREA 0.0423 n SAUDI ARABIA 14.6109 Source: BSP (March 6, 2023)