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Pangasinan militant groups, locals denounce new terminal

CARMEN, Pangasinan (Dec. 3) — On November 27, the local government here implemented the centralization of terminal for public utility vehicles passing through a national road along Carmen town.

Through an approved ordinance called “Carmen, Rosales Central Transport Terminal,” the local authority imposed a “dry run” for six months. Fees are already collected from traffic violators.

The centralized terminal is operating in a private lot, owned by Congressman Conrado Estrella, located at about 1.3 kilometers from the mouth of Carmen-Rosales intersections. Parking fee is charged at P1 to P3 for tricycles, P20 for jeeps and mini-buses, and P50 to P100 for big buses coming from Manila.

An amount of P1000, equivalent to a six-month imprisonment, is enforced among traffic violators.

A section in the ordinance stated that a one-minute loading-and-unloading time is allowed along the shoulders of the main road so as not to create traffic. The local government has deployed six to 10 policemen to employ the ordinance.

Local transport groups said that the policemen themselves violated the section when they promptly issued violation tickets not minding the one-minute interval. Local transport operators have also reportedly experienced harassment from the police.

Meanwhile, an owner of a gasoline station who asked not to be named said that the centralized terminal would monopolize business, thereby depriving other large, medium, and small-scale businesses operating in the area. Some carinderias reportedly closed down upon experiencing a downturn in profit.

Despite these reports, local authorities said in a radio interview that upon implementation, the project has met positive response from various groups. They said the project would solve the problems of traffic and illegal drugs.

In a statement, militant groups Anakpawis and Piston-Pangasinan, supported by the Baguio-Carmen Mountaineers Transport Association, Inc., said that “the project only serves the interest of few and not the public, particularly the ‘marginalized sectors of transport operators and small vendors.’” It called for the immediate scrap of the ordinance and condemned acts of harassment by the police.”# Jong dela Cruz for NORDIS

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