Campaigns
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Philippine Independence Day: A nation still in the passenger seat of US Imperialism
This June 12, as the Philippines commemorates its Independence Day from centuries of colonial control, we must confront a bitter reality: the country may have formally declared independence in 1898 and 1946, but political, economic, and military control by foreign powers, especially by the United States, never truly let go of the wheel. The legacy…
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Punitive cameras, broken system: How NCAP fails working class drivers
The No-Contact Apprehension Policy (NCAP) was introduced with the aim of enhancing road safety and curbing corruption in traffic enforcement. However, in practice, it has primarily served as a punitive mechanism, imposing excessive fines that disproportionately affect informal worker Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) drivers. These drivers, who typically earn Php300–Php500 per day, find themselves burdened…
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PISTON: System errors and red-tagging undermine election credibility, underscores need for manual count
Piston expresses deep concern over reports released by the Makabayan Coalition citing 29 incidents of automated counting machine (ACM) errors and 15 cases of red-tagging on election day, as of 10:00 AM, May 12. These reports include ballots being rejected or mishandled by ACM, smudged ballots, overvoting issues, manual ballot collection due to machine failure,…
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Piston on new DOTr order: Cosmetic ‘reopening’ of consolidation does not address livelihood threats
Piston denounces the newly issued DOTr Department Order No. 2025-009 (DO-2025-009), “Guidelines on the Reopening of Applications for Consolidation and Issuance of Provisional Authorities for Unconsolidated Individual Operators,” as yet another measure that places the burden squarely on the backs of small PUV drivers and operators. While DO-2025-009 purports to offer a “more equitable and…
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Piston on DOTr’s mandatory drug testing for PUV drivers: Safe roads require stable jobs, living wages, and humane working hours for drivers
Piston strongly opposes the Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) recent pronouncement mandating drug testing for all public utility vehicle (PUV) drivers. While ensuring road safety is crucial, this blanket policy is yet another punitive measure that unfairly targets drivers without addressing the real roots of transport problems. Mandatory drug testing, especially when implemented without proper safeguards…