The Technical Working Group (TWG) on motorcycle taxis slammed on Friday, Jan. 10, transport network company Angkas for its “two-faced” position on the government’s pilot run on the use of motorcycles as taxis.
This after Angkas filed a petition before the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 223 asking for the issuance of a temporary restraining order against the imposition of a cap on the number of participating riders in the pilot run of the program, and the apprehension of “excess riders” as stated in the pilot program’s revised guidelines.
In the same petition dated Jan. 6, 2020, Angkas also asked the court to issue an order to exclude two other motorcycle ride-hailing service providers JoyRide and Move It in the pilot program.
In a press conference on Wednesday, Jan.8, Angkas chief rider advocate George Royeca apologized for the group’s previous actions and assured the Department of Transportation and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) that it will now be cooperating to assure the success of the pilot program.
Angkas had also previously assured the DOTr and the Technical Working Group of the pilot program, that it would no longer be objecting to Section 10 of the revised guidelines and is open to competition from other transport groups joining the pilot.
“Dito natin makikita na doble kara ang Angkas. Noong isang araw, nag-sorry sila sa harap ng media. Nangako na susundin nila ang guidelines at makikipag-usap sa gobyerno. Ngayon, nagpunta sila sa korte para i-challenge ang gobyerno. Kasama sa petisyon nila na tanggalin sa pilot study ang Joyride at Move It,” said DOTr assistant secretary for communications Goddes Hope Libiran.
Libiran added that the petition for a TRO that was filed by Angkas also showed that Angkas is “telling a lie” and is not ready to release its monopolistic hold on the motorcycle ride-hailing service sector.
“Gusto nila, sila lang. Hindi ba pagkontra din ito sa dati nilang statement na wala silang problema sa kompetisyon? Ano yon, kasinungalingan lang?” she added.
On Monday, Jan. 6, a Mandaluyong Court issued a 72-hour temporary restraining order in favor of Angkas which temporarily barred the DOTr and the LTFRB from implementing Section 10 of the revised guidelines which imposed a rider cap of 30,000 for Metro Manila and 9,000 in Metro Cebu.
Angkas also previously lodged a case and was granted a TRO by a Mandaluyong City regional trial court in 2018. The lower court’s decision, however, was reversed by the Supreme Court.
