Malaysia’s big motorbike-hailing debate mulls over wrong problems
02 October, 2019
In August, a huge outcry greeted Malaysia’s Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman when he expressed his intention to introduce the Indonesian motorcycle ride-hailing GoJek to Malaysia.
Syed Saddiq had said allowing GoJek to operate in Malaysia would help create jobs for youths and support those who run small kiosks and businesses.
From the man on the street to public transport providers and religious leaders, his remarks was greeted with huge protest. A quick poll ran by the New Strait Times saw 65 per cent of Facebook respondents oppose the idea of bringing in the popular Indonesian bike-hailing services.
But his polled Twitter followers gave him 88 per cent support.
CONCERNS OVER BIKE-HAILING
Motorcyclists in Malaysia by and large do not have a good reputation.
A common sight are bike riders, food delivery vehicles and dispatch workers weaving through traffic and flagrantly flouting traffic rules.
According to police statistics, motorcyclists account for most road fatalities. In 2018, they made 4,128 out of 6,284 traffic accident deaths or 65.7 per cent. Statistics have also shown that Malaysia has had the highest road fatality risk (per 100,000 population) among Southeast countries.
The idea for a bike-hailing service has also brushed up against conservative cultural and religious concerns.
Selangor Mufti Datuk Mohd Tamyes Abdul Wahid has said in August it is unIslamic for two individuals of opposite sex with no family ties to ride on the same motorcycle. He has also added that it would be improper for men and women to ride together on a motorcycle.
But Malaysia’s top political leaders say it provides more options for commuters. Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad chimed in on the debate.
“If you feel it is not safe, don’t use. We have a choice and we are not forcing you to take the motorcycle ride,” he said in response to safety concerns on the service especially for women.
DEGO RIDE AN EXPERIMENT
The Malaysian government has so far only announced in-principle agreement to allowing motorcycle ride-hailing system to operate but has not specifically given approval to transport giants GoJek or Grab.
But bike-hailing service is not entirely new to Malaysia. A local enterprise, Dego Ride, launched a motorcycle taxi service in Malaysia in late 2016.
However, it was declared illegal by the then Barisan Nasional-led Transport Ministry in January 2017 on the grounds of safety.
Notwithstanding this, Dego Ride has been given the go-ahead last month to resume their services with the condition they tighten several key safety aspects including allowing users to provide information on pick-ups and drop-off locations to their loved ones.
According to Dego Ride’s chief executive officer Nabil Feisal Bamadhaj, the company has also been told to work with Prasarana, which operates the LRT, MRT and Rapid KL – Kuala Lumpur’s city rail network.
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