Elmer Miralles Cordero, a longtime jeepney driver who was arrested in 2020 for protesting restrictions that left drivers without income during the COVID-19 pandemic, died on Oct. 7 at 78, eight days after suffering a heart attack while taking part in another transport strike in Caloocan City.
Known as Tatay Elmer, Cordero was participating in a strike organized by transport group PISTON on Sept. 29 when he experienced difficulty breathing and suddenly lost consciousness at the group’s protest center in Monumento. He was rushed to Caloocan City Medical Center, where he remained confined until his death.
Cordero spent around five decades behind the wheel of a jeepney and gained widespread attention in June 2020 as one of the “PISTON 6,” a group of six drivers arrested during a demonstration calling for the resumption of jeepney operations amid pandemic restrictions.
The drivers were arrested on June 2, 2020, in Monumento after protesting the government’s decision to keep traditional jeepneys off the roads despite the easing of some quarantine restrictions. They faced charges of simple resistance and disobedience to authority.
Cordero, who was 72 at the time, spent a week in detention before being released on June 9. His arrest highlighted the financial difficulties faced by jeepney drivers who lost their livelihoods during the lockdown.
Almost four years later, on April 19, 2024, the Caloocan Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 83 acquitted all six drivers after ruling that prosecutors failed to establish that a lawful police order existed that the protesters had disobeyed.
Despite his advancing age, Cordero continued participating in PISTON campaigns opposing rising fuel prices and the government’s PUV Modernization Program, which the group has criticized for its impact on traditional jeepney drivers.
Following his death, PISTON: honored Cordero, describing him as hardworking, cheerful and caring toward others. The group urged fellow drivers to put black ribbons or cloth on their jeepneys and in their communities as a tribute to his memory.
