Transport strike will hurt our learners: VP Sara Davao City’s progressive groups oppose Cha-Cha

Progressive groups here oppose the proposal to amend the 1987 Philippine Constitution to lift restrictions on foreign ownership over the country’s natural resources.

John Paul Dizon, secretary general of Kilusang Mayo Uno-Southern Mindanao Region (KMU-SMR), told MindaNews on Saturday that they are wary of charter change because it would allow foreign entities to fully own and exploit resources in the country.

He said the Filipino people and domestic industries should be the ones to own and benefit from the natural resources.

Senator Robin Padilla, chair of the Senate committee on constitutional amendments and revision of codes, in a statement last week said the proposed amendments to economic provisions would benefit the ordinary Filipinos.

He assured the public they will take into consideration the “welfare of the people and not of politicians” once the process of amending the present charter begins, either through constituent assembly or constitutional convention.

Padilla said the amendments would pave the way for the entry of more direct foreign investments.

“We have a capital shortage in our economy and our government is in deep debt,” he said.

He added that the proposal to amend the Constitution would enable the government ”to respond more effectively to the serious problems of our country.”

Dizon said the change they hope to see for the people should start from genuine agrarian reform by distributing lands to the farmers where they can plant crops such as rice, a staple among Filipinos, and providing them support to increase productivity such as subsidies for farm inputs.

He said government should promote national industrialization to establish industries that the State will own.

Dizon explained that the country has raw materials but these are being extracted and brought abroad for processing.

He added that Filipinos are equally capable of processing the raw materials that would supply the needs of the country

By MAYA M. PADILLO

Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte slammed transport group PISTON and the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) over the planned week-long transport strike.

“We oppose it because it is problematic, it will hurt our learners, and the inconvenience that it may cause comes with an enormous price deleterious to learning recovery efforts — and this is a price that learners will have to pay. May I reiterate — the transport strike is a painful interference in our efforts to address the learning gaps and other woes in our education system,” Duterte said in a statement.

ACT has enjoined co-faculty to stand with jeepney drivers in their weeklong strike.

PISTON on Monday called on President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to suspend the implementation of the guidelines for the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP).

“If you cannot understand our position, or refuse to understand our position, or even pretend not to understand our position, this is only because of your unbelievable propensity to push a hardline agenda that punishes the general public. This time, among the casualties, are our learners and teachers. Kawawa ang mga estudyante at mga guro,” the vice president said.

She also said that the first failure of this transport strike is the failure to consider the learners and the teachers.