ONE-PESO CUT: With hordes of Metro Manila residents packing buses ferrying them to the provinces for the long holiday, many passengers are protesting the continued refusal of the government to order reasonable reductions in provincial fares.

After the successive hefty drops in the retail price of gasoline and diesel, jeepney and tricycle fares have been reduced significantly to the relief of commuters in the urban areas.

But provincial bus operators seem to be a privileged exception, according to Dadong Beltran of Sasmuan, Pampanga. The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, he complained, approved twice only a one-peso cut in fare for long-distance trips.

A heartless LTFRB under a certain Thompson Lantion is insulting the riding public with this measly one-peso fare reduction for long provincial trips!

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FIND LANTION!: The fare from Manila to Mariveles, Bataan, for instance, used to be P290. After two one-peso reductions by an LTFRB apparently functioning under the influence of bus operators, it is now P288.

Here’s another sample from Beltran: From Manila to Baguio, the P450 fare has been reduced twice with the same one-peso cuts to only P448.

Wow! What generosity! Passengers are supposed to jump with joy and hug and kiss LTFRB officials for their magnanimous one-peso fare reduction.

Protesting passengers are told by haughty bus conductors that the LTFRB has not given them any fare matrix, an approved table of fares based on distance. Passengers are sometimes told to go and complain to this Lantion guy, if they could find him.

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FIRE LTFRB BRASS!: President Gloria Arroyo should fire the entire board — or at least pull out their official vehicles and withdraw all their allowances so they would have to either buy their own cars and gasoline or take public transportation like their victims.

That is how government personnel who do not do their jobs or do not treat the public properly should be handled.

For instance, if a prisoner or inmate escapes, the guard on duty and his immediate superior should be locked up in place of the escapee until the fugitive is recaptured and thrown behind bars.

Btw, have you noticed that prisoners no longer saw the steel bars of their cell windows as they do in the movies? They just casually walk out the front door, with their bags in tow and a see-you-soon wave to the guard.

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INFALLIBILITY: My attempt last Sunday to explain papal infallibility and how it does not come into play in the debate between bishops and politicians over Charter change (Cha-cha) elicited emotional reactions from both sides of the fence.

The few who disagreed that the Pope is infallible in matters of faith and morals pointed out instances when the Church was in error.

One case cited was the ancient Church’s stand that the earth was the center of the universe (geocentric). But of course, like the other examples given, this is not within the ambit of faith and morals. And, btw, Pope John Paul II had apologized formally for this.

By and large, the email turnout to fdp333@yahoo.com had it 7-3 in favor of those who stood by the teachings of the Church. We strongly urge readers to access the PhilSTAR archives for our Dec. 21 Postscript titled “Sunday reflections on Church and State.”

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VOICE OF REASON: A representative email is this one from Eric O. Genilo, SJ, assistant professor of Moral Theology at the Loyola School of Theology, Ateneo de Manila University:

“Your article this Sunday is a breath of fresh air in the current atmosphere of heated polemics between church and state. Your explanation on the correct understanding of infallibility of Church teaching is excellent and on the mark.

“The word ‘infallibility’ has been often abused by both lay people and some clerics to bolster their moral arguments, as most recently seen in the debates on the Reproductive Health Bill. Your presentation is correct in saying that infallibility is only asserted by the Pope ex cathedra and is rarely used.

“Generally, a papal document has to state explicitly that the pope declares the teaching infallible. Thus Humanae Vitae is not an infallible document — it is still authoritative at the highest level but is open to improvement.

“There is in the Vatican II documents another way of asserting infallibility, not by an ex cathedra statement, but by the ordinary teaching authority of the Church which has a number of conditions that require practically universal agreement on a matter of faith or morals.

“So far no teaching has been universally accepted and formally recognized as infallible using this alternative method. Not even Humanae Vitae. Some theologians and even some bishops may make such an assertion, but theirs is only a theological opinion and does not constitute official church teaching.

“Thank you for being a voice of reason and moderation in the current debate on Church involvement in politics. We need more sane people like you in our public discourse.”

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SIMBANG GABI: Cabalens in the capital city of San Fernando, Pampanga, were pleasantly surprised at dawn Saturday to find President Arroyo with them at the simbang gabi at the metropolitan cathedral with her solon-son Mikey and a deputy spokeswoman.

During the Mass, Archbishop Paciano Aniceto urged the faithful to live by the true meaning of Christmas.

The President shook hands with cabalens. We were told she then returned to Manila and, among other things, presided over a program in Quezon City on the converting of tricycles to use liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).