The University of the Philippines Visayas SEAT-UP drivers are currently demanding for exclusivity of operation inside the campus. According to a SEAT-UP driver, this demand is due to the fact that each drivers’ organization has memberships according to the routes they operate in. The Malagyan drivers pay their membership dues in poblacion banwa, and SEAT-UP drivers pay their dues of three thousand pesos (P3,000) to the UPV Administration.
For UPV students in Miagao, waiting for around seven minutes before the UPV Seat-Up Tricycles drive off can be a burden, especially when they are running late for class. These students grumble to themselves and complain to their peers, but rarely do they complain to the authorities.
The rules and regulations for the UPV SEAT-UP operations are unknown to the students, and therefore, the thought of doing something rarely cross their minds.
The UPV SEAT-UP Tricycles have rules to follow, but the basic ones seem to be forgotten. What rules are these?
The Everyday Scenes:
Scene 1: Tricycle drivers wait with their vehicles in front of each of the dormitories on campus, one, sometimes, two at a time. Seems normal in the campus, but in the contract for the UPV SEAT-UP Drivers, there are only two (2) parking areas in the campus: the vacant area in front of the university library, and the dorm area/ staff housing guard house, commonly known as Box 2. Parking in front of dormitories is strictly prohibited, and the tricycles can only stop when there are students on the way out while the drivers are making rounds in the area.
Scene 2: Drivers wait for the tricycles to fill up before they drive off to wherever they are headed, however, in the UPV SEAT-UP Contract, it is stated that tricycles parking near the dorm areas and staff houses have only a maximum of five minutes to wait for passengers.
Scene 3: Sometimes, students become very desperate to leave that they make deals with tricycle drivers to have taxi-like services. On weekdays, they pay thirty pesos (P30) for taxi services, at night it may cost around forty pesos (P40). However, the price of the taxi service should not be more than the fare of five passengers. This would be equivalent to twenty-five pesos (P25) on weekdays, and thirty-five pesos (P35) at night or on weekends.
What this means
Given that the tricycles are the most popular and the only means of transportation in the university other than private cars, they have an existing monopoly in this line of service.
This aforementioned disregard for rules is a way for these tricycle drivers to maximize the potential of a limited client base. Given that they traverse only the roads of the university and cater to students, faculty and other people living within its boundaries, they could not afford to take only one or two passengers at a time. The cost of gasoline and the need to earn more in the span of time students and faculty go to and from school push these drivers to bend and break the rules. Waiting for their tricycle to be filled up and earn the maximum for every trip could somehow help them reach a break-even in operations cost and, it is hoped, even earn some profit.
This puts in the backseat the interests of the students they serve. These drivers know when the students are running late but seem oblivious of their being in a hurry. Blame the students who intentionally wait for the last minute to leave their apartments or boarding houses, but there are those who leave early but have to wait for the tricycle to be filled up and do not have much of a choice.
Most students would complain about this to each other but filed complaints only come once or twice a month to the Security Services Office. This goes to show that students are either not very alarmed or disturbed about the issue or they lack knowledge about the existing rules that govern the operations of these tricycles. They may not know too about the proper office to address. While these matters affect their daily lives, they seem content to settle with these practices as nobody gets seriously hurt, only seriously late.
The Security Services Office has confirmed the existence of complaints against crooked practices such as these. The complaints come mostly from the staff and students. Ms. Delia Palabrica of the Security Services Office said that it is part of the guards’ duties to monitor tricycle operations and ensure that they are following the rules. However, the guards have responsibilities that disable them from properly looking after these tricycles naming roving around the staff housing and chasing off stray cows among others.
This says a lot about the administration’s take on the matter. It seems that they are not concerned about the violations that these tricycles are making with regards to the rules made by the university and their association. They turn a blind eye to these malpractices and pass off complaints as nothing but trivial matters that could not possibly do great damage to anyone’s life.
The point however is that these tricycle drivers could not even abide by simple rules and at the expense of the market they serve. People in this university, commuters and drivers or operators, pass off these little glitches in their every day as merely minor adjustments that we all have to live with.
However, if we simply allow it to continue, we are not helping the development of the campus. We are serving the needs of one party and compromising those of another. Most importantly, we get used to small corrupt practices thinking they could do no harm when in fact they start the bigger ball of corruption rolling. If we can’t get small things right, how can we be trusted with the big things?
What others have to say:
When interviewed, a UPV SEAT-UP driver admitted to his knowledge on the rules and regulations concerning the waiting period and the maximum number of passengers in a tricycle unit. However, because of the competition with other SEAT-UP and Malagyan drivers, their earnings for each day are scarce, which is why he also asked for the help of students concerning the situation they are currently in.
When asked about the UPV administration’s implementation of the rules in the agreement, it was found that there were no drivers recently apprehended form their jobs, or called to the authorities when they breach rules in the contract.
Getting called by the authorities is rarely done because according to the UPV Security near the dorm area/staff housing, these days, they usually only write complaints and infringement reports, and send them to the Security Services Office. Whenever the renewal of UPV sticker applications come, those with a large number of infringements may not be able to renew their application.
In order for the security to do their job in apprehending drivers who breach the agreements as stated in the contract, students are encouraged to go to any of the security guards in respective areas in order to draw up an infringement report.
Distrust in the system
Some students were interviewed regarding the problems they usually encounter with the tricycle and the answers were similar to the violations cited in this report. The most common problem is the length of time spent waiting for the tricycle to be filled up and what this will cost them. A number pointed out that these tricycles wait and park right in front of the No Parking and No Waiting sign in front of the dormitories and even form a queue. Other than these, some complained about having to fill the front seat of the tricycle with three people when sometimes it seems the third person is already hanging dangerously by the side of the tricycle. These experiences as the interviewees claimed happen often.
When asked about what they have done about it, most of them answered they just vent out to their other friends. One said he sometimes talks directly to the driver and asks him if they could leave already or just pays up to keep from waiting for half an hour or so. All of them know that the tricycles should not be parking nor waiting given the sign outside the dormitory but none have tried to file a complaint.
The reason they don’t make an effort to file a formal complaint is because of the time it takes and how it gets nowhere anyway. They feel it is but a waste of time. They do not trust the filing system to be able to find solutions for the problem. They do not even know where they should be filing if ever they think of doing so.
As for the other rules violated by the tricycle drivers, the interviewees had no idea such rules existed. They are unaware of exactly where these tricycles are supposed to be parking, at what occasions they are allowed to stop by the dormitory and how many people is its maximum capacity.
Even with the problems they encounter, they claim to understand the need of the drivers to make a living and to earn the most from their services. This is also another factor that stops them from coming forward and reporting these malpractices. They said they don’t think so much about it and just go through the same dilemma everyday thinking that it’s just how it is, how it should be.
Nobody’s really happy and nobody’s actually learning from the culture that has come about from this disregard of rules. People have adjusted themselves to these problems in consideration of the welfare of the less fortunate. This then lead to the abuse of the monopoly and people’s sympathy. It is reflective of the Filipino value of emotional manipulation to the advantage of those concerned. But then again, does the end justify the means?
The UPV SEAT-UP Drivers are demanding exclusivity in their designated routes, free of Malagyan tricycle drivers’ competition. However, the rules and regulations as stated in the UPV Administration and SEAT-UP contracts are often breached. The UPV Administration rarely put the penalties in effect because the consequences for the violations in the contract will be more grave, considering the lack of warning.
Although students may understand the plight of the tricycle drivers, their sympathy only goes so far. Earning money is understandably hard, but for students who budget their given allowances, saving is similarly hard to do, which is why drivers should still follow the rules, especially when it comes to fare concerns. The number of passengers should be back to five per unit at most because the third person on the front seat of the tricycle is almost always put to danger, something that should not be taken lightly by anyone.
It is not in the matter of numbers anymore, but more on ethical reasons. If the UPV SEAT UP drivers do not abide by the rules of the administration, as well as of the association, then their demand for exclusivity could be questionable at best.
For the administration, which created and supposedly should be enforcing the rules, they have failed to do their part. Through interviews with concerned officials, it was found that while they are knowledgeable of their responsibilities, they have become lax in carrying them out. Their attitude to the complaints filed are passive, unalarmed for what could be the consequences, and unconcerned on whether these complaints will be acted upon or not.
For the students who are most affected by the disregard for the rules, must understand that the change in the system must start from them. By taking the necessary steps to put these issues to light, and by being vigilant enough to follow up the steps taken by the authorities, they may be able to improve the service that they are getting.
What seem to be lacking in these issues are the communication lines between the parties involved: the UPV SEAT UP Association, the UPV Administration, and representatives from the commuting public. By discussing these issues, a compromise may be worked out in order to cater efficiently to the needs of those involved.
