Members of the United Negros Drivers and Operators Center are planning a mass mobilization probably next month to protest oil price increases and other issues hounding the transport sector, its Secretary General, Diego Malacad, said yesterday.

The four giant oil firms in the Philippines raised the prices of premium gasoline, including unleaded, by P1.80 per liter and regular gasoline by P1.65 per liter at 6 a.m. yesterday.

Malacad said that, instead of pushing for fare hikes, they will hold a protest to put a stop to the continuing increase in oil prices.

“If we seek for a fare hike, the commuters will be the ones who will suffer, so we will hold a rally and we encourage the public to join the protest”, Malacad said.

He said they are supposed to hold the mass mobilization on August 1 on issues regarding Republic Act 10054, or the law requiring all motorcycle drivers to wear crash helmets.

Meanwhile, the labor sector in Negros Occidental hit President Benigno Aquino III yesterday saying he has no concrete plans for addressing the problem of laborer’s meager salaries.

Labor representative Wennie Sancho said that what Aquino did on Monday was not a State of the Nation address, rather it was a “Sorry” to the Nation address.

He said the economic growth Aquino was boasting about is not felt by the masses and the labor sector is dismayed because the laborers did not feel that their poverty has been alleviated.*APN

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