Transport Secretary Vince Dizon has granted temporary relief to thousands of Move It drivers, delaying the Land Transportation and Franchising Regulatory Board’s (LTFRB) decision against the ride-hailing app while its appeal is pending.
Dizon said that Move It has already filed its motion for reconsideration with the LTFRB, after the agency ordered the firm to slash its rider fleet.
“Status quo first. The LTFRB decision will not be implemented while the motion for reconsideration of Move It yesterday is being studied. So there will be no action until the motion is resolved,” Dizon said.
Move It, in a motion for reconsideration, called the LTFRB order “unjust and discriminatory,” saying the decision was done without public consultation, carried out based on outdated data and figures, and violated due process and equal protection.
“The implementation of the order threatens to displace around 14,000 riders who have relied on Move It for their lawful, decent, and respectful livelihood,” the company said.
The LTFRB had ordered Move It to stop onboarding riders for a year and cut its fleet down to 6,836, claiming the figure reflected the company’s allocation based on a 2020 press release.
Move It, however, countered that this number was never intended as a cap and that official guidelines issued later that year allowed each player in the motorcycle taxi pilot program up to 15,000 riders.
“There is no regulation, prior or after the supposed February 2020 press statement, limiting Move It’s allocation to 6,836 riders,” the motion said.
According to Move It, for the LTFRB to impose a penalty based on a press statement, and not a law or regulation, “is clearly ultra vires and beyond the authority of a government agency, instrumentality, or other body.”
Move It said that even more troubling is the fact that it was the only player penalized despite public reports that other operators have onboarded more riders—Angkas with over 50,000, and Joyride with nearly 20,000.
“The Honorable Board is only penalizing Move It for an alleged violation of the rider allocation cap although Angkas has publicly admitted to have onboarded over 50,000 riders and Joyride has been found to have onboarded around 19,500 riders. No administrative action has been taken by the Honorable Board on Angkas and Joyride to date,” the motion stated.
