Today was rather an unforgettable day in my Davao City life. I had an encounter with a total A-hole taxi driver. I mean, it isn't the first time that I've encountered a jerk taxi driver in Manila or here in Davao City for that matter but the one today was really something. It's not something that you could just shrug your shoulder off and be passive about.
The story is this, I'm supposed to meet with my boss at 9:30AM for some last minute instructions before he leaves for an official trip and I got out from home at 8:25AM and I thought I'd be late for the meeting if I will ride a jeep as doing so takes more than an hour to get to our office and only 30-40 minutes if I will take a cab. So I decided to take a cab instead not knowing that it would be an experience that can only be compared to a nightmare.
The moment I hopped into the taxi I told the driver to take me to Bajada going to SSS, near the Dacudao intersection, and I instructed him to use the "Skyline road" because it is shorter cut to downtown from Mintal where I came from. As we started driving down the said road, I thought that he's driving rather slow so I requested him to drive a bit faster for I'm suppose to be at work at 9:30AM which he followed without saying a word. Upon reaching the junction of Skyline -Diversion Road, he even asked me which way I would prefer to take: straight which would be the way to Bangkal or left which would go to Matina then Quirino. Though I am familiar with these roads I am not really sure which one of them would be more congested with traffic at that time of the day so I told him to take the road with lesser traffic and he chose Bangkal to SM.
When we reached the junction of Boulevard going to Ateneo I was thinking he would make a left and will take the J.P. Laurel Avenue which is fine. Although it's not really traffic-free the only thing that would stop any vehicle using that road are the 2 traffic lights which is really not a biggy. However, he didn't make a left to J.P. Laurel but on to the next intersection going to Jacinto. By then I was already starting to get frustrated because not only I wasn't quite sure why we're using that road but we we're moving like a turtle which was really getting on my nerves as the supposed 30-40 minutes cab ride had became an hour and if I've only known I would have just taken a jeepney and pay P20 to get to downtown than pay over P100 for a cab and still be late anyways.
Being a woman who believes people are created equal, I still consider the fact that men are usually physically stronger, thus, in any given situation that I am alone I do not compromise my self by engaging into a verbal fight or doing/saying anything that might provoke a male stranger to hit me or something. So, despite the madness that the A-hole driver was putting me into, still I managed to contain my self and stayed calm while I was hoping that the driver would figure a better and faster way. But the moment I saw that were heading to a pretty congested road, which was the road going to San Pedro Hospital, I tried to stop what was becoming a worse case to a worst scenario by requesting the A-hole driver to just use the Bajada road instead. But he ignored me, kept silent, and continued driving. Now moving slower than the turtle I became more and more frustrated and desperate and yet I stuggled not to lose my cool.
Upon reaching the back of Gaisano Mall, again I asked the A-hole driver to make a left and just use Bajada and for the second time he ignored me but this time saying, "this is a shortcut". In hearing that I thought, "could he be more stupid?!" I mean, why choose to take a more narrow and pretty congested road when you can use the bigger main road which is not so traffic anyways? But even I was already wishing that it's legal to shoot an annoyingly dumb taxi driver in Davao City I remained calm and just uttered, "It may be a shortcut but it's quite congested. It would have been better if we had just use Bajada road because that's the way to my destination anyways." The moment I said that, the A-hole driver started yelling at me. Screaming he said, "What kind of a person are you?! I already followed all your instructions and yet you still keep on whining! That's the problem with you Tagalogs*, you're all braggarts! You think of yourselves highly and you look down upon others. You think Manila is the only City. This (Davao) is City and it's normal to have traffic here so you shouldn't expect that I can just drive you to your destination in a flash!"
The A-hole driver was already yelling at me for 2-3 minutes but I since I was in shock I wasn't able to respond to him at once. I was in shock because I don't know what I've said or did for him to react that way and as far as I am concerned, I did everything to stay as calm as possible despite the fact that I was so mad at him I could squeeze his neck. Then when I finally realize that a taxi driver was actually yelling at me for God knows what reasons I managed to ask him what did I said for him to be so harsh yet this time I was still in my normal tone. Perhaps, he didn't hear me asking him as he continuously yelled at me so the inevitable happened..I yelled at him back and for 15 minutes we were yelling at each other inside the cab.
Afraid that he might do something I fear of, I immediately asked him to take me to the nearest police station as I also thought that I've been mistreated and harassed in a way and the A-hole driver should be punished with a negative police record or something. Although I was not sure if that decision was right, I now realize it was wise for me not to let him drop me off my workplace so if I would bring this matter to the next level at least he doesn't know where I work or live for that matter.
At the police station, although a police attended to us he didn't really record the complaint as if there's no assault or any physical contact then it is not their jurisdiction. Nonetheless, he advised me to go to the LTO instead and file a discourtesy complaint against the boorish driver. Since my boss was waiting for me and I was already more than an hour late for our meeting, I decided to let the A-hole driver go telling him I've connections with LTO and I could get him wherever he goes. The "connection" ain't true, but the "get him wherever he goes" part is quite possible as when we (my husband and I) went to the Office of the City Mayor, we were told that filing a complaint in LTFRB will give a pressure on the operator to have his/her driver appear on the hearing or the said agency will revoke his/her franchise. But it is also better to take this matter to LTO so that if proven guilty perhaps his license will be revoked or he'll get some kind of penance or something.
I mean, I'm not being sadistic here. I am, on the other hand, fighting for a principle. I am actually working for a business support organization and there are, in fact, people who go miles to promote tourism, investment, and sustainable development in the Mindanao community. Now, when we say "tourism" and "investment" who does it usually involve? Tourists and foreign investors. And, when these people come here for pleasure or business who usually gets to have a first hand on them once they land in Davao City International Airport? Taxi Drivers. Tourists or foreign investors don't come here and bring along their car, they ride a cab. So, imagine if a tourist will get the kind of treatment which I got from the boorish taxi driver. All efforts, time, and money of business support group like us will just go down the drain for nothing.
It is because of this principle that I told my self I just can't ignore this. It's not about me anymore to just be passive about. I'm not gonna let a low-life Taxi Driver ruin the name of the City I fell in love with. And by the way, what pisses me more is that he's not even from Davao City! He's from Siquijor for pete's sake! So srew you A-hole! I'm gonna make sure this matter will be taken seriously by those agencies concern. I will write to the media about it and make sure they would also write about it so that taxi drivers in Mindanao will take their job more seriously, be more careful, and will take pride in doing their job by considering themselves not "just a taxi driver" but a tourists/foreign investors guide in the city who plays a significant role in promoting growth in Mindanao.
I also take this opportunity to encourage all tourists/foreigners who come to visit Davao City to report any problem that you may encounter with a taxi driver by reporting it personally to the LTO office or if you wish, to the Office of the City Mayor. I was just unfortunate to have come to Mayor's office and he wasn't there because all of his employees and I in fact heard testimonies about Mayor Duterte being notorious in slapping or beating the hell up of misdeamenored taxi drivers. I was, nevertheless, given a cellphone number of Mayor's bodyguard who also works in LTO and he says he'll make sure that their agency will take action on this regard. So if you have complaints, please e-mail me or leave a comment here with your e-mail address, not you're cellphone number 'cause others might take advantage, and I will e-mail you back the cell number of Mayor's bodyguard so that he may assist you as well.
Now, this will not end here. I was told by LTFRB Regional Director that this will be processed and could take time. But, nonetheless, I said I don't mind waiting as long as in the end I would see action and result. I shall give you an update of this story. But in the meantime, enjoy your stay in Davao and don't let any A-hole spoil it. Cheers!
* Term used to call people originally from Luzon.
The story is this, I'm supposed to meet with my boss at 9:30AM for some last minute instructions before he leaves for an official trip and I got out from home at 8:25AM and I thought I'd be late for the meeting if I will ride a jeep as doing so takes more than an hour to get to our office and only 30-40 minutes if I will take a cab. So I decided to take a cab instead not knowing that it would be an experience that can only be compared to a nightmare.
The moment I hopped into the taxi I told the driver to take me to Bajada going to SSS, near the Dacudao intersection, and I instructed him to use the "Skyline road" because it is shorter cut to downtown from Mintal where I came from. As we started driving down the said road, I thought that he's driving rather slow so I requested him to drive a bit faster for I'm suppose to be at work at 9:30AM which he followed without saying a word. Upon reaching the junction of Skyline -Diversion Road, he even asked me which way I would prefer to take: straight which would be the way to Bangkal or left which would go to Matina then Quirino. Though I am familiar with these roads I am not really sure which one of them would be more congested with traffic at that time of the day so I told him to take the road with lesser traffic and he chose Bangkal to SM.
When we reached the junction of Boulevard going to Ateneo I was thinking he would make a left and will take the J.P. Laurel Avenue which is fine. Although it's not really traffic-free the only thing that would stop any vehicle using that road are the 2 traffic lights which is really not a biggy. However, he didn't make a left to J.P. Laurel but on to the next intersection going to Jacinto. By then I was already starting to get frustrated because not only I wasn't quite sure why we're using that road but we we're moving like a turtle which was really getting on my nerves as the supposed 30-40 minutes cab ride had became an hour and if I've only known I would have just taken a jeepney and pay P20 to get to downtown than pay over P100 for a cab and still be late anyways.
Being a woman who believes people are created equal, I still consider the fact that men are usually physically stronger, thus, in any given situation that I am alone I do not compromise my self by engaging into a verbal fight or doing/saying anything that might provoke a male stranger to hit me or something. So, despite the madness that the A-hole driver was putting me into, still I managed to contain my self and stayed calm while I was hoping that the driver would figure a better and faster way. But the moment I saw that were heading to a pretty congested road, which was the road going to San Pedro Hospital, I tried to stop what was becoming a worse case to a worst scenario by requesting the A-hole driver to just use the Bajada road instead. But he ignored me, kept silent, and continued driving. Now moving slower than the turtle I became more and more frustrated and desperate and yet I stuggled not to lose my cool.
Upon reaching the back of Gaisano Mall, again I asked the A-hole driver to make a left and just use Bajada and for the second time he ignored me but this time saying, "this is a shortcut". In hearing that I thought, "could he be more stupid?!" I mean, why choose to take a more narrow and pretty congested road when you can use the bigger main road which is not so traffic anyways? But even I was already wishing that it's legal to shoot an annoyingly dumb taxi driver in Davao City I remained calm and just uttered, "It may be a shortcut but it's quite congested. It would have been better if we had just use Bajada road because that's the way to my destination anyways." The moment I said that, the A-hole driver started yelling at me. Screaming he said, "What kind of a person are you?! I already followed all your instructions and yet you still keep on whining! That's the problem with you Tagalogs*, you're all braggarts! You think of yourselves highly and you look down upon others. You think Manila is the only City. This (Davao) is City and it's normal to have traffic here so you shouldn't expect that I can just drive you to your destination in a flash!"
The A-hole driver was already yelling at me for 2-3 minutes but I since I was in shock I wasn't able to respond to him at once. I was in shock because I don't know what I've said or did for him to react that way and as far as I am concerned, I did everything to stay as calm as possible despite the fact that I was so mad at him I could squeeze his neck. Then when I finally realize that a taxi driver was actually yelling at me for God knows what reasons I managed to ask him what did I said for him to be so harsh yet this time I was still in my normal tone. Perhaps, he didn't hear me asking him as he continuously yelled at me so the inevitable happened..I yelled at him back and for 15 minutes we were yelling at each other inside the cab.
Afraid that he might do something I fear of, I immediately asked him to take me to the nearest police station as I also thought that I've been mistreated and harassed in a way and the A-hole driver should be punished with a negative police record or something. Although I was not sure if that decision was right, I now realize it was wise for me not to let him drop me off my workplace so if I would bring this matter to the next level at least he doesn't know where I work or live for that matter.
At the police station, although a police attended to us he didn't really record the complaint as if there's no assault or any physical contact then it is not their jurisdiction. Nonetheless, he advised me to go to the LTO instead and file a discourtesy complaint against the boorish driver. Since my boss was waiting for me and I was already more than an hour late for our meeting, I decided to let the A-hole driver go telling him I've connections with LTO and I could get him wherever he goes. The "connection" ain't true, but the "get him wherever he goes" part is quite possible as when we (my husband and I) went to the Office of the City Mayor, we were told that filing a complaint in LTFRB will give a pressure on the operator to have his/her driver appear on the hearing or the said agency will revoke his/her franchise. But it is also better to take this matter to LTO so that if proven guilty perhaps his license will be revoked or he'll get some kind of penance or something.
I mean, I'm not being sadistic here. I am, on the other hand, fighting for a principle. I am actually working for a business support organization and there are, in fact, people who go miles to promote tourism, investment, and sustainable development in the Mindanao community. Now, when we say "tourism" and "investment" who does it usually involve? Tourists and foreign investors. And, when these people come here for pleasure or business who usually gets to have a first hand on them once they land in Davao City International Airport? Taxi Drivers. Tourists or foreign investors don't come here and bring along their car, they ride a cab. So, imagine if a tourist will get the kind of treatment which I got from the boorish taxi driver. All efforts, time, and money of business support group like us will just go down the drain for nothing.
It is because of this principle that I told my self I just can't ignore this. It's not about me anymore to just be passive about. I'm not gonna let a low-life Taxi Driver ruin the name of the City I fell in love with. And by the way, what pisses me more is that he's not even from Davao City! He's from Siquijor for pete's sake! So srew you A-hole! I'm gonna make sure this matter will be taken seriously by those agencies concern. I will write to the media about it and make sure they would also write about it so that taxi drivers in Mindanao will take their job more seriously, be more careful, and will take pride in doing their job by considering themselves not "just a taxi driver" but a tourists/foreign investors guide in the city who plays a significant role in promoting growth in Mindanao.
I also take this opportunity to encourage all tourists/foreigners who come to visit Davao City to report any problem that you may encounter with a taxi driver by reporting it personally to the LTO office or if you wish, to the Office of the City Mayor. I was just unfortunate to have come to Mayor's office and he wasn't there because all of his employees and I in fact heard testimonies about Mayor Duterte being notorious in slapping or beating the hell up of misdeamenored taxi drivers. I was, nevertheless, given a cellphone number of Mayor's bodyguard who also works in LTO and he says he'll make sure that their agency will take action on this regard. So if you have complaints, please e-mail me or leave a comment here with your e-mail address, not you're cellphone number 'cause others might take advantage, and I will e-mail you back the cell number of Mayor's bodyguard so that he may assist you as well.
Now, this will not end here. I was told by LTFRB Regional Director that this will be processed and could take time. But, nonetheless, I said I don't mind waiting as long as in the end I would see action and result. I shall give you an update of this story. But in the meantime, enjoy your stay in Davao and don't let any A-hole spoil it. Cheers!
* Term used to call people originally from Luzon.
