KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has asked the Transport Ministry to review its plan to regulate operators of food and parcel delivery services.
Following a meeting with a group of Grab drivers and riders earlier today, Muhyiddin said he took note of the grouses shared by the group on the proposal, speculated to be eyed for implementation by January 1.
He noted that the drivers and riders are already earning significantly less than before due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and that they also face difficulty in obtaining financial loans and government aid due to the nature of their occupation.
“Most Grab drivers and deliverers have expressed their concern on the temporary operator licence (LPS) ruling, and the guideline for the food and parcel delivery service, or p-hailing, rumoured to be implemented soon,” he said in a Facebook post today.
The LPS is a temporary licence which allows the use of public service vehicles as goods or e-hailing vehicles in a move to assist operators in generating additional income in light of Covid-19.
“I will ask the Transport Ministry to review this matter as soon as possible,” said Muhyiddin.
“I appreciate the huge contribution by the drivers and riders in helping to generate our economy. They are not only making a living for themselves, but are also assisting in expanding the economic chain of other businesses.”
The Vibes had on November 20 reported that the Transport Ministry plans to have the e-delivery services in the country regulated from January 1, with discussions already at the working stage.
It is believed that safety is the thrust behind the decision to regulate the service, although there are rumours that 20% of revenue from delivery charges will go to the authorities once the regulation comes into force.
Industry players have expressed concern that if the implementation is not done properly, there can be a drop of up to 40% in riders.
In his post, Muhyiddin said he understands that many who are currently doing e-hailing and p-hailing services are awaiting better job opportunities, which are limited due to the pandemic.
“However, not wanting to just sit back, they became drivers and riders. At least they are able to support their families. There are some who are forced to drive and deliver orders over eight hours daily.
“Many have also become full-time drivers and riders after losing their jobs. However, if they could earn at least RM4,000 a month before Covid-19, they now only earn half of that,” he said.
Muhyiddin said he also took note of a proposal to loosen conditions for disabled persons to obtain their passenger service vehicle license to allow them to drive e-hailing vehicles.
“I understand there are more than 200 disabled drivers operating with Grab at the moment. They have asked the government to offer support to them by loosening conditions for PSV,” he said. – The Vibes, November 24, 2020
