MANILA: 'Tatay' Elmer Cordero, who was once arrested for staging a protest in 2020, was brought to a hospital Tuesday (Sept 29), the first day of a two-day nationwide transport strike calling out the government over sharp increases in oil prices.
Despite his age and health condition, 78-year-old Cordero stood in solidarity with other jeepney drivers hit hard by soaring oil prices. Diesel rose by P8.82 to as high as P106.37 from Sept 22 to 28, while gasoline increased by P4.88 per litre to P94.11, according to local think tank Ibon Foundation.
Ibon Foundation said that while global oil prices pushed up fuel costs, governments in Southeast Asia “are actively intervening to cushion the impact on their consumers.” In contrast, it said, “the Marcos Jr administration is upholding deregulation and leaving households to absorb most of the shock.”
Earlier in April, as the Middle East crisis triggered record-high oil price increases, Malacañang said the proposal to repeal the Oil Deregulation Law should be carefully reviewed to assess its overall impact on the economy and consumers, saying that if a law were to be repealed, “it should bring overall benefit.”
Ibon Foundation said increases reached P18.31 for diesel, P15.25 for gasoline and P16.67 for kerosene after three major oil price hikes last month.
The Department of Energy (DOE) reported that Dubai crude averaged $99.41 from Aug 13 to Sept 11, exceeding the $80 threshold set by Republic Act (RA) No. 12316 for the possible suspension or reduction of excise taxes.
But while diesel and kerosene prices fell by as much as P7.57 and P5.85, respectively, starting (Sept 29), Piston still pushed through with its nationwide transport strike, saying the removal of excise taxes on petroleum products would have a greater impact on drivers than a P1 fare increase.
Motorists are also expected to see mixed oil price movements next week, with gasoline set for another increase while diesel prices are likely to drop.
For Ibon Foundation, “the government should be able to control local oil prices and should not have to pass the burden of rising global prices on to consumers, as shown by other South-East Asian countries with stronger state intervention.”
It cited Vietnam, where oil prices are capped and the Price Stabilization Fund is tapped.
Thailand, which also has a state-run oil industry, uses its Oil Fuel Fund and refinery discounts, the local think tank said. Indonesia maintains subsidized fuel prices, with its integrated national oil and gas company playing a central role in implementing subsidies, controls and asset management.
Ibon Foundation asserted that interventions by other countries in the region “may have fiscal costs but prove that governments can control fuel prices and protect consumers from price shocks.”
The Philippine government, however, adheres to RA 8479, or the Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act of 1998, which removed government control over fuel pricing and gave oil companies free rein in setting prices.
“Instead of wielding authority under its declared national energy emergency early this year to mandate oil companies’ transparent and justifiable pricing, the Marcos administration even harbored the unabated hikes. The DOE has twice denied IBON’s repeated requests to be shown the agency’s method for assessing fuel pricing,” it said.
Ibon Foundation also accused the government of refusing to “meaningfully help millions of vulnerable consumers cope with the oil price shocks,” instead resorting to “stopgap measures like temporary tax cuts and tokenistic ayuda.”
“Subsidies are meaningless if they are handed out without reining in the oil companies’ overpricing. In effect, public funds merely subsidize their profits,” Ibon Foundation said.
It called for a rethinking of deregulation and a shift toward public ownership, regulation and control of the petroleum industry, including a stronger state role in importation and distribution, strategic reserves and price-stabilization mechanisms. - Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN
