Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board Chairman Martin Delgra /Inquirer file photo
A lawmaker has called on the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to conduct an investigation into complaints that Grab Philippines is charging exorbitant fares.
Kabayan party-list Representative Ciriaco Calalang, a member of the House transportation committee, said the LTFRB is already aware of the complaints; thus, it should launch a probe on the ride-hailing service.
“They know of the complaints that Grab drivers are choosing passengers and seeking higher rates,” he said in a statement.
“This chaotic situation cannot [and] must not be allowed to let commuter rights be trampled upon,” he said, adding that the transport network company is “behaving like a monopoly now.”
This after a transport group also filed a petition which seeks to cancel the accreditation of ride sharing application My Taxi.PH or Grab Philippines.
In a hearing, LTFRB Chair Martin Delgra III disclosed that public utility vehicle drivers’ party-list 1-Utak, represented by its president Vigor Mendoza, filed the petition Tuesday morning.
The discussion of the petition was deferred by Delgra. He then directed Grab to reply to the petition within 15 days.
Mendoza said the allegations of Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta (PBA) part-list Rep. Jericho Nograles against Grab was among the grounds they cited in their complaint.
Nograles earlier bared that Grab owes its customers some P1.8 billion for charging the P2 per minute in the past five months alone. The charge was on top of Grab’s P40 flag down rate and on top of the P10 to P14 per kilometer charge.
Delgra said that during the en banc hearing in December 2016, “there was no mention of any travel time rate” by Grab.
But Grab representatives reiterated their earlier justification that the P2 per minute charge was based from the agency’s Department Order (DO) 2015-11.
The DO allowed transportation network companies to set its own fares with the oversight of the LTFRB.
Nograles pointed out that this oversight function was exercised by the LTFRB through the approved rates in December 2016.
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