CAMARINES Sur Rep. LRay Villafuerte has welcomed the decision of Malacañan Palace to extend its free bus ride program for commuters using the country’s main thoroughfare EDSA till end-December, even as he made an 11th-hour appeal to the Senate and the House of Representatives to realign funds in the final version of next year’s General Appropriations Act (GAA) so the government could further extend its Libreng Sakay initiatives in 2023.

Villafuerte, who is president of the National Unity Party (NUP), hoped both chambers of the 19th Congress could “scour for available funds during the coming bicameral (bicam) deliberations on the 2023 GAA that would be enough for the DOTr (Department of Transportation) to stick next year not only with Libreng Sakay for commuters at the EDSA Busway but also with Libreng Sakay for students at LRT-2 (Light Rail Transit Line 2).”

“I am making an 11th-hour appeal to the Senate and the House to exert their best effort to look for and realign funds when the bicam deliberations start in December, so the DOTr could continue next year with its Libreng Sakay programs at the EDSA Busway and LRT-2, both of which are out next year at this point, in the absence of specific outlays for these twin projects in the NEP (National Expenditure Program) for 2023 that the DBM (Department of Budget and Management) submitted earlier to the Congress,” Villafuerte said.

The NEP, which the DBM submits to lawmakers annually at the start of the Congress’ regular legislative session, serves as the basis for the GAA or national budget that these legislators subsequently write for the following fiscal year and then submit for the President’s approval and enactment into law.

Villafuerte issued this statement as he lauded the Marcos administration for sustaining Libreng Sakay at EDSA till end-December, “for the benefit of ordinary commuters in Metro Manila who are reeling from the double whammy of the continuous economic shock triggered by the still lingering pandemic and the elevated inflation resulting from the incessant spiralling of food and petroleum prices.”

Villafuerte said the Congress needs to allocate funds for the transport subsidies, considering that of the P206.50 billion that the Marcos administration has set aside for subsidies and cash support or “ayuda” for 2023, only P2.5 billion is earmarked for transportation, and this amount is only for fuel subsidies for certain sector stakeholders.

“With the rate of commodity price hikes rising last month to its fastest pace in 8 years, it behooves the Congress to find ways to realign funds in the 2023 budget plan during the bicam process slated next month so the government could continue offering free bus rides in Metro Manila, more so because PSA (Philippine Statistics Authority) data show that the urban poor in the national capital are the hardest hit by the current inflation spike,” he said.

He said “the Congress must also work on providing 2023 GAA funds to keep the free LRT-2 ride program for students next year, especially now when our schools have started switching to in-person classes from the virtual learning modes at the height of Covid-19.”

Although the consumer price index (CPI) soared to 7.7% in October, the urban poor in Metro Manila experienced a higher rate of 9.1% last month.

Inflation was at its highest last month for the urban poor in transportation at 18.9% and in food items at 11.2%, according to PSA data.

“During the upcoming bicam deliberations on next year’s budget, the two chambers can winnow out in the 2023 budget plan the items for specific programs or projects whose outlays can be slashed, if not taken out completely, and realign such outlays for essentials like Libreng Sakay for the EDSA Busway and LRT-2 for Metro Manila commuters and students,” he said.

Following the resumption of congressional session after the Oct. 1-Nov. 6 legislative break, Senate finance committee chairman Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara said the chamber would devote two-weeks of marathon discussions to the proposed 2023 GAA so the Senate could pass the budget bill before end-November, and then hold bicam meetings with the House in the hope of hammering out a consolidated version for submission to President Marcos before the Congress goes on its Christmas break starting on Dec. 17.

Villafuerte argued that continued free rides at the EDSA Busway and LRT-2 are necessary for commuters and students in the national capital, given that in its Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific 2022 report, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has concluded that the poorest Filipinos need continued policy intervention and support to escape poverty because Covid-19 had adversely affected their lives and livelihoods.

Citing this ADB report, he said poor and vulnerable Filipinos have been hardest hit by Covid-19 as the poorest 10% of our people have suffered a 21%-drop in consumption.

The government shells out P10 million to P12 million each day to the participating bus companies for serving about 300,000 daily passengers.

However, the daily bus ridership reportedly reached a record 404,010 0n Oct. 24, and set the highest average monthly record of 351,531 last month since it was first implemented in 2020.

This project has reportedly provided 71 million free rides to commuters as of June. The DOTr announced before the weekend that the free bus rides would be available 24/7 from Dec. 15 to Dec. 31, the last day of this transport subsidy program after the DOTr failed to secure funding to sustain it in 2023.

At present, the free rides are limited from 4 AM to 11 PM, and for those riding outside that time frame, the fare is at P13 for the first 5 kilometers (km) and P2.20 more for each succeeding kilometer.

Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said the round-the-clock free bus rides are meant to serve commuters working at night during the holidays, especially with the extension of mall hours from 11 AM to 11 PM, beginning Nov. 14.

For 2022, the government released P7 billion to the DOTr for Libreng Sakay, with an extra P1.4-billion given in September to extend its implementation until end-December.

Separately, the LRT-2 management announced it had stopped offering free rides to students since Nov. 6 as it reported an estimated potential revenue loss of P30 million, based on the average fare of P20, since the program started last Aug. 22.

Around 25,000 to 30,000 students supposedly benefited daily from the free train rides. This program has reportedly provided 1.6 million free rides during its three-month run on the Marcos administration.