KUALA LUMPUR – Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman (Muar-Independent) did not mince his words when he accused Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Henry Sum Agong of providing sloppy and ambiguous answers concerning p-hailing services.
The Muar MP reminded the deputy minister in the Dewan Rakyat today that the cabinet in 2019 approved motorcycles for p-hailing use with strict requirements, similar to those in neighbouring countries.
P-hailing is a term for food and parcel delivery services by motorcyclists.
“You gave a safe answer saying motorcycle riders are prone to accidents, but this is a yearly trend.
“When the cabinet approved this policy, a six-month supervision period was implemented,” Saddiq said.
On the motorcycle accidents data presented by Henry, Syed Saddiq said the statistics were not sector-specific.
He urged the deputy minister to present the six-month data on accidents involving the p-hailing sector to ascertain if there is an increase in accidents.
“Don’t make decisions based on emotions, but data,” he added.
Earlier, Henry said the Transport Ministry has no plans to allow p-hailing motorcycles due to safety issues.
Based on the 2019 statistics from the police, 64% or 3,900 deaths involving road accidents involved motorcycles.
“Based on this, the decision was made not to allow the service.
“Nevertheless, the government will continue to study and evaluate all aspects before a new direction is considered,” Henry added. – The Vibes, November 15, 2021