Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III has filed a Senate resolution declaring Angeline Tham, Angkas CEO, as persona non grata, following what the senator believes as Tham's orchestration of rallies, mass media and social media campaigns designed to mislead the public and to make the government look like the “bad guy.”
According to Pimentel's Senate Resolution No. 287, “When government agencies implemented the law and apprehended the drivers of Angkas, the said company initiated the staging of a mass "indignation" ride [protest ride] by its drivers which was meant to paralyze traffic in Metro Manila and embarked on a social media campaign designed to shame and bully government agencies who merely implemented the law.”
It further added that Tham is “merely a guest of our country,” yet, is “acting like an oligarch which she seems hell-bent on becoming at our expense. Her acts of deriding our sovereign laws is high-handed, arrogant and irresponsible, which should not be countenanced [allowed] but condemned to the fullest.”
Earlier this week, the Inter-Agency Technical Working Group (TWG) on motorcycle taxi study has recommended the full termination of the pilot program (which they have retracted), citing the legal rigmaroles implicated by Angkas. Just moments later, the TWG has also recommended the blacklisting of Angkas, this time, for grave violations such as operating outside of the agreed Metro Manila and Metro Cebu areas during pilot testing and, Angkas' issues with regards to ownership.
According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the DBDOYC, Angkas' registered corporation name, is “a 99% foreign-owned entity,” therefore in violation of the Philippine Constitution.
Angkas' chief transport advocate George Royoca, however, denied that claim, saying that he owns 60% of the company and that due to “operational lags”, it may take some time before the official records indicate the changes in the company's shareholder structure.
