Jeepney drivers with fuel smart cards to each get another P2k subsidy

MANILA, Philippines—Jeepney drivers who have already claimed their fuel smart cards under the P450-million Public Transport Assistance Program, or Pantawid Pasada, will each get an additional P2,000 subsidy to cushion the effects of rising oil prices.

Energy Undersecretary Jose M. Layug Jr. said Thursday that the amount to be disbursed will come from the programs’s remaining P200 million.

Layug pointed out that only an estimated 95,000 cards were claimed out of the 150,000 cards printed. He said that once the list of recipients has been finalized, the government will then divide the P200 million among those on the list.

The program, which was launched May last year on the initiative of the Department of Energy, gives fuel subsidies to jeepney and tricycle drivers to help them cope with the spiraling oil prices.

The proposed amount for the second tranche of reloading will be almost double the initial P1,050 subsidy given to jeepney drivers.

Layug expects the second round of reloading within two weeks’ time, at the earliest.