Makabayan blasts Marcos over fuel prices, oil cartel

The Makabayan Bloc blasted the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for the continued “domination” of the oil cartel in the country, resulting in an uncontrolled surge of oil prices.

“We, the Makabayan bloc, condemn the oil cartel’s shameless exploitation of the crisis in Iran and West Asia to manipulate pump prices and squeeze super profits from a people already drowning in hunger wages and soaring costs of living,” the Makabayan bloc said.

The group said the price shock, the biggest since the Oil Deregulation Law took effect in 1998, exposes the brutal reality that deregulation did not create competition; it consolidated corporate power, enabled coordinated price increases, and left the public defenseless.

It further stated that fuel prices saw their highest single-week adjustment this week by as much as P38.50 per liter.

The increase in diesel prices ranged from P17.50 to P24.25 per liter, with fuel retailers splitting the adjustments into two to seven tranches, while gasoline prices were more expensive by P7 to P13 per liter starting Tuesday.

The upward adjustment for kerosene, widely used for cooking, heating, and aviation, ranged from P32 to P38.50 per liter, it said.

“We condemn the Marcos Jr. administration for failing to act fast and decisively in the face of this historic oil price hike. Token show-cause orders, moral lectures against ‘profiteering,’ and threats of legal action ring hollow when government policy itself guarantees oil firms the freedom to pass on every shock, pad margins, and stagger increases at will.”

The group stated the staggered increase is also a joke since it will only be spread over three consecutive days, adding, “Hindi makatwirang magbanta sa ilang gasolinahan habang pinananatili ang mismong batas na nagluluwag sa kartel at nagkakadena sa mamamayan.”

At the same time, the group rejected the cruel line that the public should simply tighten belts and conserve fuel while millions are already forced to skip meals, accept punishing commutes, and stretch impossible budgets.

“They are passing to the public the challenge to be thrifty while the oil cartel and the bureaucrat-capitalists are raking in big revenues coming from government taxes. The administration’s talk of emergency powers is a smokescreen for its own lack of planning and its refusal to confront the oil cartel and the failed deregulation framework,” the Makabayan bloc said.

The group further stated, “We press for immediate, concrete, and pro-people measures: remove excise taxes on oil; remove VAT on petroleum products; scrap the Oil Deregulation Law; hold corrupt officials and profiteers accountable; raise wages to match the spiraling cost of living; and stop the US-Israel bombing and war that fuels instability, price shocks, and human catastrophe. Kagyat na ipatupad ang totoong price relief, hindi paimbabaw na paalala at panandaliang limos.”

The group said they are preparing for a major protest at Mendiola on 27 March to hold the US-Marcos Jr. regime accountable for worsening poverty and economic crisis, for its incompetence amid runaway prices, and for policies that favor big business and foreign interests over Filipino families.

“Singilin ang rehimen sa pananagutan at ipaglaban ang agarang ginhawa at pangmatagalang solusyon.”