Secretary Michael Dino (3rd from left), Presidential Assistant for the Visayas, meets with Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard ‘Ahong’ Chan and Regional Director Eduardo Montealto of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board to discuss operations of e-jeeps. Land Transportation Office Regional Director Victor Caindec (left) and Regional Director Shalimar Tamano (back to the camera) of the Department of Tourism also attended the meeting. | Contributed photo/OPAV photo
CEBU CITY — Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard ‘Ahong’ Chan expressed support for the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP) after he met with Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Secretary Michael Dino on Thursday, July 18.
The secretary met with Chan to clarify about the issue on the PUVMP.
Dino scheduled a meeting between Chan and Regional Director Eduardo Montealto of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board after the latter sought the secretary’s intervention on the matter.
Mayor Chan had sought the review and revision of the Local Public Transport Route Plan (LPTRP) that was submitted by the previous administration.
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Chan denied the news that came out that he opposed the PUV Modernization Program of President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration.
“We favor the (PUV) modernization. I only want to review the route plan of the e-jeep,” Chan said in Cebuano.
However, he reiterated that he did not want the current tricycle and multicab drivers to be displaced following the plan of having 100 e-jeepneys plying the City.
In its initial launch, 25 e-jeepneys were deployed in the island of Mactan that would ply four routes from Lapu-Lapu City to Cordova.
The mayor explained that he wanted to talk with the drivers so they could come up with a better route plan for the e-jeeps, multicabs, and tricycles.
“I know that Mayor Chan is a very reasonable man and how he has been very supportive of President Duterte’s programs,” said Dino.
Land Transportation Office (LTO) 7 Regional Director Victor Caindec and Department of Tourism (DOT) 7 Regional Director Shalimar Hofer Tamano also attended the meeting.
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Montealto told Chan that the Department of Transportation in partnership with Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) has a livelihood program for the drivers in the country.
The “Tsuper Iskolar” is a scholarship program for the drivers and its family member to give them more skills and livelihood opportunities.
Montealto also said that they would wait for the revision of the route plan adding that there will be a feasibility monitoring within the three years of implementing the PUVMP to check viability of the current transportation situation. /dbs