Just to give you a heads up, the information contained in this article may or may not be valid in a day’s time thanks to the indecisiveness of this country’s policy makers.
As we all know by now, the Transportation Ministry over the weekend issued a regulation allowing app-based motorcycle taxis (locally known as ojol) to pick up passengers, overturning a previous regulation by the Health Ministry ruling that they were only allowed to transport goods and food to customers as part of the Large-scale Social Restrictions (PSBB) protocol in Jakarta to contain the spread of COVID-19.
Well, yesterday evening, Governor Anies Baswedan said in a press conference that the ojol passenger ban is still in effect in the capital, saying that Jakarta is adhering to the Health Ministry’s regulations in regards to PSBB.
“That’s why we will continue the policy that app-based two-wheeled vehicles are allowed to transport goods, but not passengers,” Anies said.
The governor added that police and military personnel will be deployed throughout the city to catch violators. The ban also applies to motorcycle taxis not registered with any ride-sharing app.
A Health Ministry official said that its PSBB regulations give regional governments leeway in implementing specific rules regarding public transportation, including the ojol passenger ban.
The Transportation Ministry has yet to issue a statement regarding the latest development.
Jakarta’s PSBB came into effect on Friday and is scheduled to run until April 24, but may be extended if the government deems that there’s still a significant COVID-19 outbreak in the city.
Jakarta accounts for nearly half of all Indonesia’s COVID-19 caseload with 2,186 confirmed cases. As of April 13, the national caseload is 4,557.
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