Angara expects swift fuel subsidy payout

SEN. Juan Edgardo «Sonny» Angara said Friday that the fuel subsidies being provided to the transport sector is a key government intervention that can help public utility vehicles (PUVs) operators and drivers cope with the rising prices of fuel, and the payout should not be delayed.

Angara, who chairs the Senate Committee on Finance, said that P3 billion is available this year under the General Appropriations Act (GAA) for the transport fuel subsidies for some 1.36 million beneficiaries.

He pointed out there should be no reason for delay in the fuel subsidy payout as the Commission on Elections has officially exempted the release of the money from the spending ban during this election period for the 2023 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan polls.

Under the fuel subsidy program, the senator said, P10,000 will be given to each of the drivers of modernized public utility vehicles (MPUVs); P6,500 each to drivers of traditional four-wheel PUVs; P1,200 to delivery riders and P1,000 to tricycle drivers.

«With pump prices going up for 11 straight weeks, the PUV drivers have to bear the additional costs and deal with lower incomes. This could mean more hours on the road and less food on the tables of their families,» he said.

«Whatever help we can give them, including the fuel subsidy, will be of help in ensuring a continuous service for our passengers,» he added.

Angara noted that in 2022, P2.5 billion was allocated to the Department of Transportation for the purpose.

Under the 2024 National Expenditure Program, the executive branch has proposed P2.5 billion for fuel subsidies to the transport sector.

In the case of the 2023 GAA, the senator said that Malacañang also proposed P2.5 billion, but Congress increased this by P500 million.

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