An anti-Go-Jek sign held up in a neighborhood in Pondok Jaya, Bintaro. Photo: Reddit/Roflpaladin
Since its smartphone application debuted early this year, motorcycle taxi service Go-Jek has quickly become an integral part of Jakarta’s transportation network. This has led to numerous clashes with traditional ojek drivers that have been covered extensively in the media (there’s a particularly illuminating article on the subject from Tech in Asia).
The government and police have promised to protect Go-Jek drivers from other ojek drivers who attack or intimidate them for working in their territory, but there had been little evidence of that protection reported in the media so far.
But now some Go-Jek drivers are claiming that the police are backing them up in a big way – by sending undercover officers to crack down on places where traditional ojeks have organized against the new guard.
“Now we are receiving back up from members of Brimob (Mobile Brigade Police). So at vulnerable points, there are members of Brimob disguised in civilian clothes,” Faridz Budhi a 33 year old Go-Jek driver, told Kompas on Sunday.
Faridz said he felt a lot safer now when entering areas that were previously prone to intimidation against Go-Jeks, though he said he had never experienced any harassment directly since he started the Go-Jek gig a month ago.
Another Go-Jek driver, Helmi Can, echoed Faridz sentiments, saying, “We have been told about this. We have backup from Brimob, so there is no need to worry.”
While it would certainly be good if the police were making such an effort to protect Go-Jek drivers from intimidation and abuse, the police themselves have not confirmed an operation like the Go-Jek drivers described.
When asked by Kompas, Jakarta Police Chief Tito Karnavian claimed not to know anything about it.
“I have not heard of (Brimob members providing backup for Go-Jeks),” Tito said yesterday.
But the police chief said that his officers would of course take action against any criminal actions by ojeks, regardless of the victims.
So are the Go-Jek drivers misinformed? Or are the police actually just not telling the media about an ongoing undercover operation? We’ll just have to wait and see how much worse the battle of old and new will get.
