At the meeting, held at Kamala Police Station, local taxi operators vowed to the Kathu District Chief they would not cause any violent incidents to affect the image of Phuket tourism again, claimed a report by the Phuket office of the Public Relations Department (PR Phuket).
Present at the discussions were Kathu District Chief Siwat Rawangkul, the Kamala Police Chief, Phuket Tourist Police officers, officials from the Phuket Land Transport Office (PLTO), Kamala Tambon Administrative Organisation (OrBorTor) Deputy President Jaroon Kobkoi and an assortment of Kamala taxi operators.
The meeting resolved five key points “by agreement”, said the PR Phuket report.
First, the taxi operators are to acknowledge the results of the action of the relevant government agencies if they cause disturbances in their occupation, such as being prosecuted according to relevant laws, said the report.
That included the need to order the revocation, seizure or suspension of a public transport vehicle or driving license, and the need to send any drivers for “training”, if required, the report added.
Second, the taxi operators are also to recognise the decisions made by the PLTO in case an app is not operating within the confines of the law. “The Department of Land Transport has requested cooperation from the Ministry of Digital Affairs to deal with apps that violate the relevant laws,” the report noted.
Third, while waiting for police action on any incident, the PLTO is to investigate and strictly enforce the law regarding the violation of any laws involving public taxis. This is to be done “by allowing operators to help by being the eyes and ears” of officials, the PR Phuket report said.
The breaking of any laws regarding taxis and their drivers will result in prosecution, the report assured.
Fourth, there are to be no more incidents involving violence, “as shown in the news”, the report continued. All operators involved must discuss concerns and come to an agreement within the group “so that serious incidents will not affect them, and which will definitely affect the image of tourism again”, the report said.
The fifth, and most important point, was, “If all operators comply with the terms of the agreement successfully, the relevant government agencies will expedite the determination of 15 designated pick-up and drop-off points in Kamala in accordance with the relevant laws.”
The report did not elaborate on exactly who will be determining where the 15 “pick-up, drop-off points”, called “taxi ranks” anywhere else in the world, will be located.
The report also did not make it clear exactly which taxi drivers will be allowed to pick up or drop off passengers at the 15 locations.
Also of key importance, despite some reports claiming that the result of the meeting being a certainty, the fifth point literally began with the word “If”.
Officials are maintaining their focus, and trying to shift the public spotlight on reporting the incident in Kamala last Saturday night, on taxi apps operating illegally.
The taxi-app driver, a woman, who was accosted and had her car damaged by a taxi queue driver in front of Cafe del Mar had picked up the order to pick up the passenger through the JustGrab app.
As of June 13 this year, JustGrab (operated by GrabTaxi), is allowed to pick up and drop off passengers in only two areas: 1) Phuket Town, 2) Patong-Karon.
Without reasons explained, JustGrab drivers in Phuket are not allowed to pick up or drop off passengers anywhere outside of the two zones.
Of note, the JustGrab driver involved in the incidetn was fined B2,000 and had her driver’s licence suspended for 30 days for her part in the incident - that is, for turning up in front of Cafe del Mar to pick up a passenger.
The taxi-queue driver who damaged her car "agreed" to pay B5,000 in damages to her vehicle, and also had his licence suspended for 30 days.
However, the taxi-queue driver, unlike the JustGrab driver, suffered no financial penalty for his violent behaviour in the incident.