ANWAR TO LOOK INTO TAXI DRIVERS’ PLIGHT
He also visited fishermen, Indian community
TAXI drivers here, who are facing hard times due to the influx of ehailing rides in a market once dominated by them, have found a listening ear in Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
The PKR candidate for the Port Dickson seat said he would look into their issues, after meeting with a local taxi drivers’ association here yesterday.
“I have heard them out. We will see what can be done after the polls,” said the PKR presidentelect.
Anwar, who was on a walkabout here, took time out of his schedule to speak with some 30 members of the Port Dickson Taxi Owners, Drivers and Hire Cars Welfare Association.
Association chair Rosli Latif said this year, drivers faced up to a 20 per cent dip in earnings due to the presence of ride-hailing services, such as Grab.
He said the government came up with regulations for e-hailing platforms and service providers, but to no avail.
“We need requirements, like Puspakom checks, to be enforced on e-hailing service providers.”
He said it was unfair for taxi drivers to toe the line at their personal cost, while e-hailing providers got off scot free.
“To make matters worse, we also have to compete with buses.”
Fishermen at the jetty here urged Anwar to bring sustainable development to the area.
Longtime fisherman Awaluddin Buyung said a coal factory had been operating unchecked for many years, spewing dust into the environment.
“This growing problem has even affected the business of food stalls near the sea, which is parallel to the jetty.
“We do not mind development, but it should not be done at the expense of the environment and our livelihoods.
Earlier, Anwar, a Penang native, stopped by the town’s post office and said he was casting his ballot by post.
He also visited the site of the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple, where the Indian community here urged him to visit the facility, which was abandoned half-way through an upgrade.
He was asked to look at ways on how work on the temple could resume.
Present during Anwar’s twohour campaign trail was former Port Dickson member of parliament Datuk Danyal Balagopal Abdullah and former MIC vice-president Datuk Seri S. Sothinathan.