Many citizens living in West Java and especially in its capital city of Bandung were quite cross when the government of West Java announced on October 10 that they would temporarily ban ride-hailing services such as Go-Jek, Grab and Uber while legislators came up with new regulations to govern the burgeoning industry to replace those struck down by the Supreme Court.
But today, exactly one week later, Bandung Mayor Ridwan Kamil announced through his official Instagram account that ride-hailing services were not, in fact, banned and that they could continue to operate as normal for now.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BaVeLpVjJeZ/?taken-by=ridwankamil
The photo reads “online transportation in the city of Bandung is not banned and is allowed to still operate”. The accompanying caption says that they consulted with the Director General of Land Transportation at the Ministry of Transportation and that there was no prohibition online transport services, but notes that ride-hailing companies “must adjust their administrative and legal aspects with the new regulations on November 1, 2017”.
Last week’s ban announcement came after an alliance of conventional public transportation drivers and stakeholders called Wadah Aliansi Aspirasi Transportasi (WAAT) threatened to hold a massive strike across Bandung in protest of ride-hailing services, leading Ridwan to announce (also through Instagram) that the West Java provincial government supported WAAT’s aspirations and would enforce a temporary suspension on ride-hailing apps until the central government could come up with new regulations (there were no reports of the suspension actually being enforced during that time).
This week’s flip-flop comes a day after a large demonstration by thousands of driver “partners” from ride-hailing companies in Bandung, who complained the ban threatened their livelihood.
(So basically the lesson is, if you want to force the government to do something in Indonesia, either hold a huge demonstration or threaten to hold one. You’ll get what you want… until the next large counter-protest group changes their mind.)
In August, Indonesia’s Supreme Court lifted the Transportation Ministry’s regulatory constraints on ride-hailing apps nationwide, saying that the existence of their services are a natural consequence of technological advancement and demand for cheap and efficient public transportation options. The ministry was given three months to lift the regulations or revise it, which they are expected to do in the near future.
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