A party-list lawmaker on Friday said Grab cannot use their drivers as shield in their obligation to return their illegally collected fares and should charge this refund from their own pocket .
Rep. Jericho Nograles of Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta Party-list said the decision to collect the illegal P2 per minute extra fee was made by the Grab management and not by its drivers.
Nograles estimates that Grab owes their riders some P3.24 billion in illegally collected fares after it admitted that it has been charging P2 per minute on travel time from its riders since June 2017.
“I am appealing to Grab and the LTFRB to impose a refund of the estimated P3.2 billion in illegally collected fares. Since the drivers are unaware of this malicious act, Grab should charge this refund from their own pocket. Grab management ang mastermind niyan eh at wala namang alam diyan ang mga drivers,” Nograles said.
“All these actions are done by a company that eliminated its competition by way of merger. Kung sa basketball pa, binili ang kalaban para maluto ang laro,” he added.
Nograles also thumbed down Grab’s insistence that Transport Network Vehicles Services fares can be set by Transport Network Companies such as Grab because this has been overruled by LTFRB when it issued specific fare rates including it calculations.
“As cited by Grab, per DOTr 2015-11, the TNVS fares can be set by the TNCs subject to oversight of the LTFRB. That oversight was exercised by the LTFRB through the approved rates of December 2016 which Grab faithfully followed until they unilaterally added on P2 per minute fare on June 2017 without the consent of the LTFRB,” Nograles said.
“Furthermore, in 1994, specifically in the case of KMULC vs Garcia and LTFRB, the Supreme Court ruled that the LTFRB cannot delegate its power to determine rates, and therefore, Grab’s actions are deceitful and malicious,” Nograles said.