Erica santos

may you post what you want, without overthinking.

My heart goes out to JEEPNEY DRIVERS, now that the fuel keeps on increasing.

It’s heavy kasi my FATHER was once a jeepney driver too (our big family in the picture) 🥹

And for many years, pamamasada ang bumuhay sa amin. I have seen, up close, what it means to depend on a livelihood where income is uncertain, yet effort is constant, araw-araw kang lalabas, pero hindi sigurado kung ano ang maiuuwi mo.

There were days when he would come home exhausted, carrying very little, sometimes as little as ₱100, just enough to buy rice.

As children, we learned early that silence at the table often meant making peace with what was available, rather than what was needed.

Tahimik lang kami, pero ramdam namin yung kakulangan.

This is why the current situation is not merely an economic issue to me, it is deeply human.

Hindi lang ito tungkol sa presyo ng krudo, kundi sa buhay ng mga pamilyang umaasa sa bawat biyahe.

When FUEL prices rise, the impact on jeepney drivers is not abstract. Direkta itong tumatama sa kita nila. Their earnings are tied to daily operations, and unlike fixed-income earners, sila mismo ang sumasalo ng pagtaas ng gastos.

The structure of their work remains the same, long hours, physical strain, dependence on passenger flow pero ang gastos, patuloy na tumataas.

This creates a widening imbalance:

effort remains high, but net income diminishes.
Mas pagod, mas matagal sa kalsada, pero hindi pa rin sapat.

At a broader level, this reflects a deeper structural concern. Jeepney drivers are essential to public mobility, sila yung tahimik na nagdadala sa atin sa trabaho, sa eskwela, sa araw-araw na buhay.

They form part of the invisible framework that allows cities to function. Yet when pressures arise, sila rin yung madalas na naiiwan na lang magtiis.

Hard work, in this context, is no longer a sufficient condition for stability.

Hindi na sapat ang sipag kung ang sistema mismo ang hindi sumusuporta.

And that is where the question shifts from individual resilience to collective responsibility.

Kaya sana, the GOVERNMENT moves beyond temporary measures and develops a clear, sustainable action plan for drivers hindi lang panandalian, kundi pangmatagalan.

One that considers fuel costs, fair fare adjustments, and real protection for those whose labor keeps everyday life in motion.

Because when a system relies heavily on people who are themselves struggling to sustain it,
what is at risk is not only livelihood, but dignity.

At ang totoo, walang taong ganito kasipag ang dapat magdala ng ganitong bigat mag-isa. 🤍