Like the rest of the community, the taxi driver’s union de la ciudad is not spared from extortion, a modality that snatches the profits from their daily effort and even their lives when they refuse to ‘collaborate’ with the ‘vaccinators’.
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The extortions They not only involve the collection of ‘vaccines’ from the different cooperatives, but also the collection of money to enter specific areas of the city, as well as the theft of units by criminals, in exchange for letting the driver live.
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Talking about this delicate subject represents yet another threat to taxi drivers; however, under the anonymous format, through EXPRESO they want to make a call to the authorities of the State, the mayoress of Guayaquil and the governor of Guayas to take actions that provide them with security and allow them to work with peace of mind.
The constant criminal acts that they suffer while working in their units keep the Guayaquil taxi drivers’ union concerned and have forced its members to equip their vehicles to face the underworld.
The details:
– Express Journal (@Expresoec) February 8, 2023
Nearly 15,000 yellow vehicles circulate in Guayaquil. Most of its members have fallen prey to vaccinators who ask for between $30 to $20 a week to let them work, according to what they tell this newspaper.
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“They persecute us through phone calls, voice notes and even through the WhatsApp application, where they identify themselves as members of a gang and require payment of vaccine”, denounces a taxi driver.
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He even adds that they have had to pay to get out unscathed of certain sectors where they carry passengers. Therefore, a $4 race becomes a $2 race. These criminal acts are recorded when they were racing and on the way the suspects intimidate them with knives, firearms and sharp objects. “We work at a loss. We feel harmed ”, he laments.
Another union member adds that there are several sectors in which the criminal gangs They run the taxi business as they please.
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“They are in Mount Sinai, Popular Bastion (northwest), Guasmos (south), suburbs, and northern sectors. They operate everywhere, they are well organized to cause fear of yellow transport”, he stresses worried.
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To the offices of a cooperative, located in the north of the city, last week a letter requesting a payment in exchange for security.
In Guayaquil, the taximeter is no more than another decoration inside the taxi, and this has generated criticism and complaints from users. 👇 https://t.co/07sBaX88bM
– Express Journal (@Expresoec) February 8, 2021
“It is threats are frequent. Some drivers make complaints to the Police; but others keep quiet so as not to get into trouble”, says another professional driver.
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According to data provided by the Police, between January 1 and April 15 of this year there have been 190 extortion crimes to this guild. This represents a slight increase in relation to the same period of 2022, which totaled 175.
The Police details that not all cases are related to extortionists, since there are people who take advantage of fear for profit, posing as members of criminal gangs.
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A taxi driver, belonging to a cooperative located in the south of the city, says that he has been a victim of crime three times. The last experience he had was in a race to 29th and Oriente, southwest. “Two armed men pointed a revolver at my head and took everything I had earned for the day. Thank God i’m alive to tell”, he muses.
This is corroborated by the leader of a cooperative, who mentions that near the 30% of colleagues have experienced money theft, cell phones and even their units, of which only a few have been recovered. “Some have been physically attacked, others have been kidnapped and left handcuffed in desolate places; some escaped unharmed because they did not resist; but others have lost their lives to face criminals ”, he laments.
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The taxi driver stresses that there are anonymous people posing as members of dangerous criminal gangs. “They send us papers with texts requesting ‘voluntary contributions’ in favor of the organizations, a situation that has motivated us to implement new security measures,” he says.
As EXPRESO has reported in other editions, many taxi drivers They have installed video surveillance cameras inside, in front and in the back of their vehicles; as well as radios to communicate with the stations that do daily monitoring.
Two minutes were enough for three criminals, in the darkness of the early morning, to open the doors and steal a school express parked on one of the sidewalks of block 4 of the Simón Bolívar citadel, north of Guayaquil.
Further:https://t.co/k92KvKQJG9
– Express Journal (@Expresoec) February 21, 2023
The measure has been taken in view of the fact that only 1,000 units have been equipped by the Traffic and Mobility Agency (ATM), when there are more than 15,000 yellow vehicles circulating in the city and most have fallen prey to the underworld.
SituationTaxi drivers seek help from the authorities to provide them with security, in order to continue working without fear of falling victim to criminal gangs.
“But equipment is only a deterrent. We need the Police together with the traffic agents to carry out checks to prevent the criminals from annihilating us”, emphasizes a driver, who reiterates that the authorities must place security equipment on all taxis and not on a few as they have done.
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And despite the need to support his family, some taxi drivers have decided not to work because they are afraid of losing their lives, since the thugs have shown that they do not touch their souls to attack them.
“Crime prevents our colleagues from working calmly as before. 50% of taxi drivers no longer go out at night and avoid taking careers to vulnerable sectors. Those who do so risk losing their lives, since the environment in the city is worrisome”, emphasizes the leader of another cooperative, who questions that the authorities do nothing to control this wave of crime that grows daily in the city and in the country in general.
Thefts of accessories and of the electrical system (memory) that allows the vehicles to function become frequent in the Bolivarian citadel, in the north of Buenos Aires. So far this year there have been 50 robberies.
The details:
– Express Journal (@Expresoec) March 29, 2023
“There is no authority to help us in any moment. We are helpless, ”she concludes.
2023-04-23 03:00:00
#Guayaquil #vaccines #pricking #taxi #drivers
