ILOILO City – Despite simmering internal financial troubles, the Metro Iloilo Transport Service Cooperative (MITSCOOP) maintains that it remains afloat — able to manage its obligations, even as issues surrounding delayed salaries and unremitted employee benefits continue to surface.
“Of course, we have ongoing amortization payments to the bank, and while we are experiencing some issues, our current financial statements indicate that the cooperative can cope with our expenses,” said MITSCOOP chairperson Annabelle Fale in Hiligaynon. “However, we are also dealing with some backlogs in certain payments.”
Fale’s statement comes in the wake of a July 1 protest by drivers and passenger assistance officers demanding action on pressing concerns such as unpaid salaries, unremitted benefits, and service contracting payments related to 76 buses deployed along the vital Jaro Tagbak–Iloilo City route. The issue has since been resolved, but it exposed underlying financial strains within the cooperative.
Fale assured that salaries remain a non-negotiable priority for the organization.
“While some of our other payables have been deferred, we have always ensured that salaries are paid on time,” she said, underscoring the coop’s commitment to worker welfare.
She further clarified that some of the demands raised by the protesting personnel are rooted in past leadership issues.
“The benefits they are requesting are not my direct responsibility, as these issues stemmed from previous leadership. However, the current leadership is making every effort to address these outstanding payments because we cannot simply overlook them,” she stressed.
MITSCOOP officials said internal conflicts related to the matter have already been settled, suggesting a period of stability may be ahead.
Meanwhile, Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) Region 6 director Antonio Escobar confirmed receiving multiple complaints related to financial mismanagement and leadership disputes in transport cooperatives across the region.
“We’ve received many complaints… some are still pending and are being reviewed to determine whether or not they are within our jurisdiction,” Escobar said.
To address such issues, particularly those arising from the public utility vehicle modernization program, CDA-6 formed a local monitoring committee involving the Office of Transportation Cooperatives (OTC), Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), Land Transportation Office (LTO), and the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA).
“Our transport cooperatives are particularly challenging,” Escobar admitted. “They require not only CDA’s attention but also that of the Department of Transportation, LTFRB, and OTC.”
Records show that in 2023, the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) extended P367.72 million in credit to MITSCOOP to finance 148 modernized public utility jeepneys./PN
