Former Davao City representative Karlo Nograles on Sunday expressed full support for calls to exempt thousands of delivery riders from securing business permits, saying the added financial burden adversely affects the riders’ livelihood and is counter-productive to the efficient delivery of essential services to the general public.
Last November 5, members of the United Davao Delivery Riders Association (UDDRA) gathered infront of the Sangguniang Panlungsod building to highlight their plea to exclude an estimated 8,000 delivery riders from CIty Ordinance No. 0291-17, or the Davao City Revenue Code, which requires them to to apply for business permits.
The regulation has been in effect since an amendment to the Ordinance was made in 2021. The permits’ annual renewal costs between P1,720 and P5,200, depending on the motorcycle model.
Nograles, who was most recently Chairperson of the Civil Service Commission, added that the registration is an added cost directly shouldered by the riders, and failure to pay can prevent them from working and plying their routes.
Nograles pointed out that “delivery riders are not business owners. Hindi sila negosyante, mga empleyado ang karamihan sa kanila. There are in fact Supreme Court decisions affirming that delivery riders are employees of various e-commerce platforms such as Grab and Food Panda. Hindi sila ang may-ari ng negosyo. So we don’t see the need nor the logic for imposing fees on them to operate individually as riders.”
Nograles, who was most recently Chairperson of the Civil Service Commission, added that the registration is an added cost directly shouldered by the riders, and failure to pay can prevent them from working and plying their routes.
“Ang gusto nga natin, job generation for the people of Davao, hindi job loss. Ang laking pakinabang ng mga riders natin sa pang araw-araw na buhay,” stressed the lawyer.
“Malaki din ang benepisyo para sa ating mga kababayan sa Davao City. Mula food delivery, package delivery. Iwas traffic ang mga customer, tipid sa oras, at mas napapabilis ang transaksyon.”
“So bakit natin dadagdagan ang burden sa riders, pati na rin sa customers? Baka maging added cost pa iyan sa end-user, kasi hindi malayong gagawa ng paraan para bawiin ang ipinambabayad sa permit. Baka ipasa iyan sa customer. So it doesn’t make good business sense and, in the end, everyone will suffer,” added the former congressman.
Riders have recently heightened their calls for amendments to the City’s Revenue Code to reflect their requested exemption, a move that Nograles fully supports.
The ex-CSC Chair said that he is open to closely coordinating with stakeholders, especially among the ranks of riders and consumers, to find immediate and doable solutions to the issue.
“Iyong regulasyon na nagpapataw ng requirement sa business registration, kailanganang ayusin at amyendahan yan. For our LGU, there are more creative ways of generating revenue from e-commerce. Hindi maganda na ang City Hall ay nagiging dagdag pahirap sa mga ordinaryong mamamayan na naghahanap buhay.”
