Luddites in government

It is such a shame that we have Luddites in government who prevent us from enjoying the benefits that new technology brings.

For those who do not know what a Luddite is, it comes from a time about 200 years ago when in the midst of the British industrial revolution, textile workers feared for their jobs. So the weavers attacked the new automated looms that were replacing them.

In today’s context, the BBC says it is a popular retort to someone struggling to operate their new smart phone or refusing to buy the latest gizmo: “You’re such a Luddite.”

 “There is another word for it – technophobe – but it doesn’t convey the same sense of irrational hostility to the modern world.”

The LTFRB last week ordered Grab and Uber to pay a fine of P5 million each for allowing unregistered units to operate. Grab and Uber were also ordered to keep the unregistered units off the streets until the LTFRB can figure out what to do with them, however long it takes.,

I asked Yves Gonzalez of Uber what the LTFRB order means to them.

“It will be catastrophic. It’s equivalent to ordering us to just shut down. We are already undersupplied in this current market, unable to service 20 to 30 percent of requests. Ordering to turn off unlicensed vehicles will gravely impact millions of riders.

 “Fares will be max all the time, wait times will be hours not minutes. People will just not be able to get a ride overall. Imagine how hard it is to get a ride now on a Friday night with the existing supply. When you remove the unregistered, it’s an impossible situation for everyone.”

During the hearing, Grab admitted 28,000 vehicles are affected and Uber’s Gonzalez said “we have around the same.” LTFRB records only show around 3000 with permits on their database.

That is the unfairness of it all. True, Uber and Grab violated current rules by allowing unregistered cars to operate. But that is only because LTFRB refused to process applications – even if only to replace those who have dropped out.

It is clear LTFRB is bent on closing down the tech-based solution to transport problems plaguing Metro Manila. It is not the ultimate solution but it addresses a problem for a good sized segment of the market looking for a transport alternative to driving their cars.

LTFRB says their problem is that there are no laws governing the type of service Uber and Grab provides. But that’s the thing. Laws usually trail innovation. But laws shouldn’t stop progress.

Remember the problem of Skype and Viber? The telcos wanted government to ban their use because it cuts their revenues from long distance service. Indeed such apps killed long distance service. But that’s what disruptive technology is all about.

An article in Top Gear, a motoring magazine and website, correctly pointed out that “the whole success of ride sharing was born from the failures of taxis––so please, do not regulate them back into the same broken model that got us into this mess to begin with.”

Indeed, the job of the LTFRB is to look “for anything that improves the lives of commuters. Not about protecting business interests. We understand the need for rules, but let’s not use that to punish companies who have simply found a better way.”

Nothing should stop some taxi operators from forming a consortium, hiring a bunch of young techies to design a program similar to Grab and Uber and move upmarket into a new age. That’s where the future is going anyway. Bureaucrats who make money from the current system can delay technology’s disruptive entrance, but cannot stop it.

As writer James Deakin puts it, denying Grab and Uber permits to operate means less options. “People will still need to move around… going by the profile of their riders, they will not jump in a cab or a bus.  Majority of them will use a private car. So that is what you will effectively be replacing them with.”

It is unjust for LTFRB to accuse Uber and Grab of violating the law when it was LTFRB, through inaction, that forced them to do what they did. Both tried to comply, but the LTFRB stopped accepting applications roughly a year ago and nothing moved since.

This reminds me of LTO coming out with a “no plate, no drive” policy when it was LTO’s fault that cars have no plates. At least LTO allowed an interim solution of using the conduction sticker number. LTFRB should do likewise and have an amnesty period until it figures out what to do.

An LTFRB official had some nerve to say Uber and Grab should be regulated “so that Uber and Grab vehicles would be as ‘safe’ as other public modes of transport with existing franchises: taxis, buses and jeepneys.” Absolutely delusional!

From experience, we all know the modes of transport which LTFRB regulates are far from safe. At best, the act of regulating the buses, taxis, jeepneys, etc merely institutionalized corruption at the LTFRB.

What happens on July 26, 15 days after the July 11 order? An estimated 90 percent of ride-hailing vehicles will stop operations. Riders will now all scramble for the 10 percent left.

Uber and Grab must be doing something good. It managed to amass a loyal and massive following from commuters precisely because of the failure of the system LTFRB is regulating. People are tired of being abused by the taxis and feeling unsafe and harassed in jeepneys and buses.  

The riding public should be allowed to choose the mode of transport they want. An ongoing online poll is asking which of the two (taxi or Uber/Grab do you feel is a safer, more economical option? It drew 69,054 responses: Taxi got 194 votes or 0.3 percent and Uber/Grab got 68,860 votes or 99.7 percent.

It is obvious there is a market for this kind of service which the LTFRB cannot ignore. Indeed, a commuter commented on the Top Gear article that “Grab and Uber are the greatest discoveries and best gifts to commuters like me. I don’t want to go through horrible experiences in the past when hailing cabs, riding the bus, etc.”

Another commented: “Funny, I feel safer with these new services compared with that of the already existing and legally ‘regulated ones’.”

I am not sure if the LTFRB folks want to kill Uber and Grab because they don’t know how to regulate them. Or they want to keep them hanging because they are still figuring out how they can extract happiness out of them like they do with the rest of land transport modes. Uber and Grab apparently also disrupts corruption... kalakalan sa LTFRB.

One comment I saw on the controversy summed it up: There are just too many ancient dinosaurs in government… who also evolved into crocodiles.

Error

There was a significant error of fact in my column last Monday that was not of my making.

As printed, my column reports that “Bill Gates and Warren Buffett who did inherit their wealth…”

 I checked the final draft I sent to the business desk and here is how I wrote it:

 “Bill Gates and Warren Buffett who inherited no vast wealth…”

 One of the risks of the job… I take responsibility for my mistakes, but it is embarrassing to get text messages early in the morning for a mistake I did not commit.

  Boo Chanco’s e-mail address is [email protected]. Follow me on Twitter @boochanco.