Kabataan Party-list Secretary General Vencer Crisostomo today scored Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) secretary Mar Roxas for deriding the PISTON-led national transport strike as perwisyo (nuisance) during his visit yesterday at a protest point in Cubao. The youth leader also warned of youth-led nationwide strikes this week to push the government to increase funding for social services like health and education.

“Roxas’ derision of the transport strike as a nuisance reveals his refusal to think deep about the issue. The real nuisance is the unabated oil price hikes and government inaction despite the people’s clamor for oil price regulation, removal of the 12 percent VAT on oil products and the urgent implementation of a P9 rollback in the price of gasoline,” Crisostomo said.

Earlier, PISTON said nothing concrete was given by President Aquino despite their dialogue with him and Roxas last Wednesday in Malacanang.

“It is so easy for the likes of Roxas to dismiss the people’s protest as another annoyance because the continuous oil price hikes do not affect him as a gut issue. Ang mga kawawang tsuper at mamamayan ang sinisisi, hindi ang pagiging inutil ng gobyerno para buwagin ang monopolyo sa langis,” Crisostomo said.

Also responding to Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda who claimed that the protesters are part of the problem instead of the solution, Crisostomo said that it is the Aquino administration who should be held responsible for the problem of crazy-high oil prices.

“Who is allowing the cartel to jack up prices of oil products? Who is resorting to threats of disenfranchisement instead of heeding the just demands of our transport groups? Is it not the Aquino administration with Mar Roxas as its transportation secretary? Who is part of the problem now instead of the solution?” Crisostomo said.

More strikes

On the heels of the transport strike, Crisostomo said that youth-led national strikes are in order this week in light of budget cuts to the already insufficient funds of social services like education and health.

Crisostomo said that for 2012, the P21.9 billion proposed budget for State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) is still P24 billion short of the actual needs of the country’s public higher education institutions. On the other hand, the P49.9 billion health sector budget is still P50.1 billion short to satiate the urgent needs especially of public hospitals.

Crisostomo added that also in the 2012 proposed national budget both SUCs and the health sector will not receive a single centavo for Capital Outlay (CO), the allotment class for the construction of infrastructures and procurement of equipment. He furthered that cuts in Personal Services (PS) and Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE) will be likewise devastating for SUCs and the health sector.

“When the government turns its back on the people’s welfare, that’s our signal to launch collective actions,” Crisostomo said.

Recently, House Representatives led by Kabataan Party-list Rep. Raymond “Mong” Palatino have vowed support for a sufficient funding increase for SUCs. Manila Auxilary Bishop Broderick Pabillo and Sentor Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III also expressed unity for the campaign.

Crisostomo also said that the Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges (PASUC) and the University of the Philippines system are also gearing up for the national week of actions that will culminate on September 23.

“The broad unity of various sectors ready to strike for sufficient funding to social services embodies the dynamic hope that will pierce through the grim shadow of government neglect. We launch these series of nationwide strikes and actions not for anything but the future of our people and nation,” Crisostomo said.

Crisostomo said that the nationwide strikes and actions will be accompanied among others by prayer rallies, noise barrages, white ribbon lacing, and school color t-shirt wearing. ###