The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian flagged a major issue involving platform operators that falsely categorized Motorcycle (MC) Taxi riders as delivery service workers, causing these riders to miss their scheduled cash relief assistance payouts.
Secretary Gatchalian discovered the discrepancy during last Saturday’s (March 28) cash aid payout rounds at the Quezon City Memorial Circle (QCMC).
“I think it’s already becoming unfair na ang gobyerno ang nasisisi sa maling listahan. But remember, mula dun sa TNVS, mula sa service delivery, pati na rin ngayon sa Motor MC Taxi, ang listahan nanggagaling na sa kumpanya nila mismo, hindi na sa government agencies,” Secretary Gatchalian said in an interview with reporters at the QCMC payout site.
The DSWD chief emphasized the severity of the problem, naming specific Transportation Network Companies (TNCs) involved in the errors in classifying their drivers and riders resulting to confusion during scheduled payouts.
“I will not answer for them. You have to get in touch with, especially Grab, and I’ll name check it again, Grab that operates Move It as a sister company or subsidiary. I’m name checking them kasi three-fourths ng complaints ngayong araw ay tungkol sa misclassification naman,” Secretary Gatchalian pointed out.
The DSWD chief said the misclassification could be a deliberate move by the identified TNCs to hide the lists of names that have already exceeded the allowed operational quotas set by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).
“Ang hunch ko, and I can be wrong, please check with them. Dahil siguro lumagpas na naman sila sa allowed quota nila ng mga MC Taxi drivers, they intentionally misled us to believe that these are delivery service drivers. Para lang to make sure na hindi naman masilip na lumagpas na naman sila sa quota nila. I don’t know. We have to ask them,” Secretary Gatchalian explained to reporters.
Secretary Gatchalian noted that the government is taking the heat for those missing names, stressing that the situation is unfair considering the payout roster came directly from the TNCs themselves.
The worse part that the DSWD chief noted was when riders showed up on the MC Taxi payout day, only to find out the workers were listed under the delivery service category from the previous days.
“So ang nangyayari, marami ngayon pumunta kasi raw they were listed as delivery service itong nakalipas na dalawang araw. Nasa listahan sila, pero hindi sila nakapunta kasi alam nila MC Taxi sila pero nandun pala sila as delivery service. So ang tanong nga namin, why are the platforms mis-declaring naman their drivers or their riders?,” Secretary Gatchalian said.
By Monday, the DSWD’s Crisis Intervention Program (CIP), which manages the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS), expects to reach a significant milestone in the distribution program.
“By Monday, mas maganda siguro yung numero. By end of Monday ang forecast namin, we would have spent close to 1.5 billion worth ng ayuda, ng tulong pinansyal. So, 80% yan ng 216,000 na on an average na target natin. Yung 20%, yun nga yung mga hindi nakapunta, nasa probinsya, nagkasakit,” Secretary Gatchalian noted.
Despite the list issues, Secretary Gatchalian assured the public that unclaimed cash relief assistance will be handled through special payouts after the Holy Week break. (KI)
