Motorcycle taxi company Move It told the House Committee on Metro Manila Development during a public hearing Wednesday, Nov. 23 that its deal with Grab Philippines is above board.
“We are happy to disclose that the acquisition complied with the law, and all approvals required for the acquisition have been obtained. It did not violate any requirement of the MC Taxi TWG,” Move It representative, lawyer Ann Albana said during the hearing.
Grab had earlier acquired Move It, one of the firms taking part in the pilot implementation of motorcycle (MC) taxis.
Move it further claimed that the deal was compliant with the rules set by a technical working group (TWG) under the Department of Transportation (DOTr), which launched the pilot implementation.
This was maintained by Move It during Wednesday’s hearing of the House Committee on Metro Manila Development on calls by some quarters for government to review the deal between Grab and Move It.
“We wish to assure the public that the operations of Move It will still be under the supervision of the MC Taxi TWG, and it will continue to abide by MC Taxi Guidelines, especially on the safety and welfare of the consumers,” Albana said.
Some quarters claim that the Grab-Move It deal was designed for Grab to have instant accreditation as MC taxi by virtue of its acquisition of Move It. Grab does not have am MC taxi service.
But Move It said the arguments against it and Grab are “clearly misplaced and are merely based on speculations and conjectures".
It stressed that even with the acquisition, Move It continues to hold and possess the accreditation given by TWG, and it is not in any manner transferred to Grab.Even with the acquisition, Grab and Move It will remain two distinct and separate entities, it added.
“Thus, it is erroneous and misleading to claim that the accreditation has been transferred to Grab by virtue of the acquisition,” the Move It lawyer pointed out.
Moreover, Move It emphasized that the acquisition was not anti-competitive since Grab is not offering motorcycle ride-hailing services.
“At present, there are other market players who appear to have a stronger presence in the motorcycle ride hailing market,” Albana said, referring to its rival Angkas.
“In fact, the acquisition is pro-competitive and pro-consumer. Strengthening Move It will improve and develop competition and satisfy the increasing unserved demand for motorcycle taxis,” she added.