Many Dego riders afraid to work during COVID-19

The government has been urged to provide safety assurance to Dego riders in delivering food and goods during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Founder and chief executive officer of Dego Ride, Nabil Feisal Bamadhaj, said such an assurance was needed as the riders were concerned over security aspects especially during the enforcement of the Movement Control Order (MCO).

"There has been a drastic decline of 98 per cent for e-hailing taxis to ferry passengers but in terms of delivery of food and goods, it has increased dramatically.

"But the problem is that many riders do not dare to work because of roadblocks and fear of compromising their safety," he said in an AWANI Newsletter on Wednesday.

Nabil said he was conducting safety checks on the riders besides seeing the need for the group to be assisted throughout the implementation of the MCO.

"I think they need help because these riders work or take this rider's job as second and third jobs. During the MCO period, they are not able to do regular work.

"In their free time, they usually work with this company to earn about RM900 to RM1,500 a month to cover any loss of regular income.

"But at this point in time, I think they need something from the government to cope with the situation like the MCO," he said.