KABATAAN Partylist on Sunday confirmed that members of Sangguniang Kabataan all over the Philippines have signed a unity statement against the pending December 31 franchise consolidation deadline.

As of December 31, there are 111 officials who have signed the statement.

“We, the undersigned members of the Sangguniang Kabataan, stand in solidarity with our fellow Filipinos—especially the 200,000 jeepney drivers and operators—whose livelihoods are at stake due to the looming December 31 franchise consolidation deadline,” began the statement.

Filipino youth, the constituent base of the SK officials, have trended the hashtag #NoToJeepneyPhaseout across social media platforms in support of the striking jeepney drivers as well as to share their upcoming struggles as commuters in 2024.

“We call upon the Filipino youth to rally behind this cause, to amplify our collective voice, and to advocate for the preservation of the livelihoods and rights of our jeepney drivers and operators,” the statement stressed.

The youth group earlier stressed that many students who are children of jeepney drivers will be affected by the jeepney phaseout.