Amid Angkas issue, Recto says unemployment ‘saddest, meanest Christmas gift ever’

MANILA, Philippines — The “saddest and meanest Christmas gift ever.”

This is how Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto described the looming loss of livelihood of around 17,000 bikers of ride-hailing firm Angkas following the decision of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to impose a 10,000-biker limit to transport network companies (TNC).

“Christmas is the season of giving, not of taking away; of spreading cheer, and not sowing unhappiness,” Recto said in a statement.

“But for 17,000 Angkas drivers and their families, they got the saddest and meanest Christmas gift ever: their livelihood being taken away,” he added.

Further, Recto said that the “gift of unemployment is the most heartless of all, the worst Christmas bonus, one that even Scrooge will not even dare think of.”

The senator lamented that while many government agencies celebrate the holiday with goodwill, “one agency, however, decided to celebrate a joyous season with the mass firing of thousands of breadwinners.”

“It is an act of cruelty that goes against the season’s spirit of compassion. More so because the victims did nothing to deserve that unkindness,” Recto said.

The senator said that the LTFRB can open up the motorcycle taxi service to other competitors in the interest of competition.

“But this should not be at the expense of firing those already in the business, those who have invested their life savings in motorcycles, those who have logged good safety records, those who have cultivated sukis who rely on them for their daily ride,” he said.

“On the contrary – Angkas drivers stepped in to help Metro Manila’s stranded and ride-less commuters, by bringing them to their offices and returning them to their homes safe and sound,” he added.

LTFRB earlier announced the extension of the pilot run for motorcycle taxis for three more months. It also announced the participation of two new operators in Metro Manila, aside from Angkas.

The three operators were given a maximum of  39,000 registered bikers — 10,000 bikers for each of the three TNCs for Metro Manila and 3,000 bikers per TNC for Metro Cebu.

Bikers of Angkas gathered at the Edsa Kalayaan Shrine in Quezon City on Sunday to protest the said decision.