An incident in Paranaque City in Luzon should serve as a warning to all those contracting the services of Uber drivers as well as those tapping private transport services in Metro Cebu.
An ABS-CBN report stated that the driver supposedly talked to a female passenger about how easy it would be for him to rape any female he picked up, and his graphic conservation obviously alarmed his passenger, who tried to get out but was unable to since the doors were locked.
The passenger managed to avoid being molested by calling her cousin who tailed the Uber driver, forcing him to drop her off. The incident caught the attention of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), who ordered an investigation into the incident and ordered the local Uber company to identify and suspend the driver.
Uber Philippines, for its part, said it had delisted the driver from their directory, but the incident is just the latest in a growing number of recorded cases in the country in which Uber drivers were found to be victimizing their passengers.
Instead of being a solution, private transport services like Uber are becoming another sand trap for the riding public already burdened by the inadequate public transport system and the worsening traffic congestion.
The problem in cracking down on abusive Uber or other transport service contracted drivers as seen in the Paranaque incident lies in the fact that like social media, there is little information on the drivers while the passengers’ personal background and credit history can be seen by both the company and the drivers they contract.
Thus, theoretically, the driver knows where the passenger lives, and those wishing to victimize their passengers especially females can stalk them, while the passengers and the transport agencies have to probe deeper into the aliases and nicknames used by the drivers in their Uber driver profiles.
While there is still no reported incident of abuse involving Uber or other private transport services like GrabCar or those using transport apps like GrabTaxi, that doesn’t mean it cannot happen here in Metro Cebu.
Due to the recent Christmas and incoming New Year and Sinulog holidays, Metro Cebu residents can either take a chance riding passenger jeepneys or jockeying with each other in hailing taxis whose drivers can get picky and overcharge passengers.
We’d like to believe and hope that Uber, GrabCar and other private transport services have improved their screening and accreditation process for their contracted drivers and would fully cooperate with both the aggrieved parties and the government transport agencies in investigating and penalizing any abusive drivers lest they lose public trust.
It’s not that we are discouraging people from using these private transport companies; it’s just that it’s better for commuters to take all necessary precautions when availing of their services.