President Rodrigo Duterte is against additional fees in purchasing stored value or “Beep” cards, according to his spokesman Harry Roque.
According to Roque, the president feels it is another added burden to Filipinos already suffering from the effects of the pandemic.
“Ang pagkakaalam ko po, ang naging damdamin ng Presidente ay tutol din siya diyan sa binabayaran na Beep card,” Roque said in a briefing.
[As far as I know, the President opposes Beep card charges.]
“Nahabag po talaga ang Presidente dun sa isang balita na maraming mga naghihirap na ating mga kababayan ang nagulat dahil ang pera nila ay sapat lamang sa pamasahe at sa pagkain para sa araw na yun,” he added.
[The President was moved with pity with the report that many of our impoverished people were surprised (with the cost), as they only had enough cash both for food and transport to get by for the day.]
The Department of Transportation recently suspended the mandatory use of the Beep cards in the EDSA Busway effective this week until further notice after card service provider AF Payments, Inc. did not agree to waive the ₱80 cost of the card on top of the fare load.
EDSA Busway passengers are using a dual payment system for now, meaning they can either use Beep cards or cash for fare payments.
