Minister confesses taxi drivers were not directly consulted on introducing taxi line
Ameen said that they want to provide taxi service to the public at a good standard in the Maldives, as it is done in other countries
Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation Mohamed Ameen speaking to press
Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation Mohamed Ameen has agreed that taxi drivers were not directly consulted regarding the introduction of the government's taxi line.
At a press conference held at the President's Office on Monday, a journalist from RaajjeTV noted that Minister Ameen had previously revealed that he would meet with taxi drivers before making a decision on introducing the taxi line. The journalist also questioned why the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) was tasked with introducing the taxi line without consulting the Taxi Drivers Association.
In response to this, Minister Ameen revealed that the work to introduce a taxi line was not done in secret and that everything was being disclosed. He added that all necessary processes were carried out.
Further, Minister Ameen added that they do not engage in discussions with specific parties or pursue permits according to the preferences of particular groups when introducing the taxi line.
Noting that the government is not attempting to infiltrate a specific business, Minister Ameen said that taxi service is an essential service provided to the public, and that the service is currently not being provided properly to the citizens.
Therefore, Minister Ameen said that they want to provide taxi service to the public at a good standard in the Maldives, as it is done in other countries.
The Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation has revealed that the taxi line service decided to be introduced by the government will begin in the first week of July. The government will start the taxi line service with a fleet of 100 taxis. Those currently providing the service continue to stress that they will suffer significant losses and that it will greatly affect their income.
However, complaints about the lack of taxi services for internal trips in the capital Malé City have increased. On the other hand, several people have been saying that taxi services are easily available from Malé to Hulhumalé and from Hulhumalé to Malé.
