Uber said on Saturday that it expects to resume operations in the Philippines “soon” after regulators agreed to lift a ban slapped against the American ride-sharing giant in exchange for a fine.
The government meted Uber a one-month suspension on Aug. 14 following a tussle over driver permits, sparking public outrage as some 66,000 vehicles were forced off the streets.
Hundreds of thousands of Manila commuters find Uber and its ride-sharing rivals welcome alternatives to the country’s notoriously poor and overcrowded buses and trains, run-down taxis and irascible cab drivers.
But late Friday, the government’s transport agency said it would lift the ban following an Uber appeal. It ordered the US firm to pay a fine of P190 million ($3.7 million) and give its drivers financial aid for lost earnings.
“The online ride-sharing services of the respondent USI [Uber] will be restored when it has paid the amount of fine and the said financial assistance remitted,” a Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board resolution said.
Uber said it would comply with the ruling, which also requires it to pay about $391,000 a day in financial assistance—split between its Philippine drivers—until the company restores its operations.
“We’re working hard to meet the conditions for the lifting of the suspension and hope to resume operations as soon as possible,” Uber said in a brief statement that did not give a timetable.
The Philippine transportation agency last year imposed a moratorium on the processing of new applications for ride-sharing services as it studied how to regulate a growing industry.
Officials said while southeast Asian rival Grab eventually followed the directive, Uber defied it, while other transport groups accused Uber of acting above the law.
Uber said this month it was accepting new applications for vehicles but was not processing them pending its discussions with regulators.
It also urged the government to simplify the accreditation process, with a representative telling a congressional enquiry: “We cannot impose 1900s regulations on today’s technological innovations.”
Meanwhile, Senator Grace Poe said the hefty penalty imposed by the country’s transport regulator against Uber should serve as a warning to the app-based transport firm, as she welcomed the decision of the Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board to lift its 30-day suspension.
“I welcome the decision of the LTFRB to penalize Uber with a fine instead of having it serve the remainder of its 30-day suspension,” said Poe, chairperson of the Senate committee on public services, in a statement.
“The payment of a hefty P190-million penalty as a pre-condition before it can resume operations should be enough to make Uber rethink its actions and reevaluate its strategy in testing the extent of government regulations,” Poe said, adding that the P20 million financial assistance extended by Uber to its partner-drivers daily is also a form of penalty.
Uber, which has been known to dodge government regulations worldwide on the back of a strong public support, earlier suggested it will pay P10 million in lieu of the one-month suspension.
Poe, who last week initiated a meeting between LTFRB officials and Uber representatives to tackle a swift resolution on the issue, expressed disappointment on the issuance of the decision late Friday afternoon, “effectively taking out any opportunity for Uber to pay the penalties.”
“It is frustrating to think that we have a long weekend ahead of us and people will have to suffer the inconvenience of having limited transportation choices in going around the Metro with their families. How will Uber be able to immediately comply with the LTFRB decision given that banks are closed during the weekend?”
“If the LTFRB had allowed Uber to operate right away, then this could have served as a great relief to our people, most of whom rely on TNVS due to the comfort, reliability, and safety they provide,” said Poe. With AFP