Four transport groups yesterday urged the government to review Grab Philippines’ acquisition of motorcycle (MC) taxi firm, Move It Philippines.
A joint petition, signed by the Lawyers for Commuters Safety and Protection, National Public Transport Coalition, Arangkada Riders Alliance and Digital Pinoys, was filed before the Office of the President and the Department of Transportation (DOTr) as inter-agency technical working group of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on September 8 calling for the urgent review of Grab’s acquisition of Move It.
Move It was accredited by the DOTr-Technical Working Group (TWG) to operate as MC taxi together with two other entities, Joy Ride and Angkas.
The groups said Grab Philippines tried to enter as a de facto fourth player in 2021 through a supposed partnership with Move It, but ended up rebranding its transport bike service in its Grab app.
“This was not allowed by the TWG and was permanently terminated,” the transport groups said in their petition.
“From the foregoing, it is clear to us that Grab Philippines’s acquisition of Move It is a mere maneuver to participate in the pilot program, as it has always intended, without going through the government-mandated process for accreditation,” they added.
The groups also mentioned that any substantial changes in the control or ownership of any of the accredited companies must be fully disclosed to and approved by the accrediting body, in this case the TWG, to protect the interest of all concerned, most especially the Filipino riding public.
In addition, the members of the organizations have raised concern about the probable impact of the acquisition on the potential increase of fares, saying the reason why MC taxi services have boomed was because of the lower fares charged by the operators, on top of the convenience that their services provide to the commuting public.
“Their apprehension is not without factual precedent. The very same entity in question, Grab Philippines, previously acquired its erstwhile competitor Uber, and the acquisition resulted to higher fares after Uber ceased its operation, Subsequently the Philippine Competition Commission found Grab guilty of overcharging its passengers and ordered the company to refund its customers,” the groups said.
Last month, Grab said it has notified the LTFRB prior to its acquisition of Move It, which has a cap of 7,000 riders, the lowest allocation among the three players.
In response, Grab Philippines said in a statement Move It remains as one of the three motorcycle operators, and its accreditation remains its own and does not transfer to Grab.
