MANILA (Mindanao Examiner / Feb. 12, 2013) – A Filipino youth group called Anakbayan has criticized anew another round of oil price hike in the Philippines and challenged Senate bets to reveal their stance on oil regulation.
“We dare every candidate running for the Senate to answer the question: are they pro or anti-oil price hikes?” asked Vencer Crisostomo, the group’s national chairman.
Petron on Tuesday announced the following increases: P1.20 per liter for premium gasoline, diesel, and kerosene; while P1.10 per liter for regular gasoline.
“It is easy for any senatoriable to claim that they are pro-poor, or even that they want to keep the prices of basic commodities down. But the twin questions of ‘are you pro-oil price hike?’ and ‘how will you keep oil prices down’ are the ones that will separate the genuine pro-people bets from the others,” Crisostomo asked.
“The 20,000-strong membership of Anakbayan will enthusiastically support any bet that shows us a comprehensive oil price control plan, one that is beyond mere slogans and motherhood statements. Those who support oil price hikes will feel the same enthusiasm as we campaign against them,” he added.
But Kabataan party list national president Terry Ridon has vowed to prioritize in the next Congress the ‘revival’ of oil price control bills which were killed by administration lawmakers in the recently-concluded House session.
Kabataan party list’s outgoing representative, Mong Palatino, is one of the co-authors of House Bills 4355 and 4704, which aims to repeal the Oil Deregulation Law and the Value Added Tax on petroleum products, respectively.
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