‘Show utmost restraint,’ Grab urges TNVS drivers

INQUIRER.NET

AS a group of transportation network vehicle services (TNVS) drivers bared plans to stage a “transport holiday” on July 8, ride-hailing service firm Grab on Thursday urged caution, asking drivers to resort to dialogue with commuters and regulators, the Philippine Daily Inquirer said in a report.

“We urge our TVNS partners to show utmost restraint before taking actions that could negatively impact the ability of passengers to book rides,” Grab public affairs manager Nicka Hosaka said in a statement.

Grab said that while it recognizes TNVS drivers’ right to free speech and peaceful assembly, it is also asking them to work with regulators and passengers through a dialogue, the Inquirer report said.

“In many ways, we also support the call for smoother processes and faster timelines,” Hosaka said. “Let us take the high road and to not resort to any rash actions that would directly affect the passengers we are all committed to serve.”

On July 3 a group of TNVS drivers and labor group Defend Job Philippines said in an advisory they intend to temporarily stop operations and go offline from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on July 8.

The groups said the transport holiday is a protest against the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board’s (LTFRB) “pahirap policies” (or policies that make conducting business difficult) which include alleged inconsistencies in its processing of registrations and applications for TNVS. The groups are also protesting what they said are the LTFRB’s complicated requirements, slow processing and releasing of provisional authority and Certificate of Public Convenience, the Inquirer said in a separate report.