Another ‘rude’ cab driver in hot water

SCREENGRAB of Hannah Quiwa’s Facebook post on Jan. 8 shows the subject of her complaint, Premium Taxi cab driver Rolando Camara, arguing with her and her father over the P50 additional fare the former was demanding. Facebook.com

THE LAND Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Monday summoned another taxi driver after a passenger accused him of swearing at her and her family when she refused to give him an additional P50 on top of the metered fare.

In a show-cause order, the board directed the operator of Premium Taxi Premium Transportation Corp. and the cab driver, Rolando Camara, to explain in writing within five days why their franchise should not be cancelled or suspended, based on the complaint posted online by Hannah Quiwa.

The LTFRB also summoned both Camara and the operator to a hearing on the incident at the agency’s office on Jan. 20.

In a Jan. 8 post on social networking site Facebook, Quiwa accused Camara of being offensive, rude and reckless when she and her young sister and their niece—both minors—rode in his taxi (AAO 7317) on Dec. 28 to get to Robinson’s Galleria.

Quiwa said their ordeal started as soon as they boarded the cab when Camara asked them for an additional P50 as he claimed that traffic was heavy at that time.

The complainant said she agreed but only if they would indeed get caught in heavy traffic.

“He kept on complaining and swearing throughout the whole time he was driving,” Quiwa wrote in her post.

Quiwa added that she later talked to a friend on the phone. During their conversation, she mentioned that she should have availed herself of the services of an app-enabled taxi service instead. At this point, Camara, who was apparently eavesdropping, shouted at her: “You want to get a Grab cab? Go ahead, get a GrabTaxi. It’s no problem at all!”

She said that Camara tried to pull over to let her and the children out but wanting to avoid an argument, she told him that everything was fine.

Quiwa noted that the cab driver then took a roundabout route to get to their destination in an apparent bid “to increase the meter fare.”

“I contacted my dad to wait for us at the drop point [at] the mall, because I refuse to pay [an extra] P50 to someone who wasn’t just rude and reckless but also trying to [make] a fool [out] of me,” she said.

She added: “When we got [to] the mall, my dad didn’t have a hard time [determining] which taxi [we were in] because [Camara] was [honking] at someone crossing the road [on the pedestrian lane] in front of the mall.”

Quiwa further narrated that when her father confronted Camara about the additional P50 he was demanding, the cab driver “started shouting at my dad. It escalated so fast that the guards at the mall had to interfere.”

“He continuously shouted at my dad, saying numerous offensive things as I was telling him [father] that he was being rude to me. My dad was telling him that it wasn’t about the money, it was about [him being] a reckless [and rude] driver,” she said.

Camara, however, swore at them, even telling them: “You’re willing to be killed over P50!” Quiwa said she and her family stood their ground and paid him the fare indicated on the meter.

At the prodding of the mall security guards, Camara eventually drove away but he was still fuming mad, she added.

The narrative was accompanied by photos of Camara’s taxi, and a wild-eyed Camara.

Quiwa ended her post with a warning to the public to “stay safe,” as well as a message to taxi drivers: “If you can’t [take] the traffic and control [your] temper…, stay at home!”

The post has been shared more than 40,000 times as of Monday.

Based on Quiwa’s post, the LTFRB has asked Camara and his operator to defend themselves against several possible franchise violations: demanding a higher fare from passengers, overcharging, employing a rude or an arrogant driver, and employing a reckless driver.

Just last week, AFG taxi driver Roger Catipay also had to defend himself before the LTFRB after a video of him cursing at and threatening a passenger   who refused to pay him extra went viral on Facebook.