So, like, apparently the head honcho of the Online Transportation Drivers Association of Indonesia, Raden Igun Wicaksono, is all set to lead a protest with hundreds of thousands of online motorcycle taxi (ojol) drivers on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. They’re demanding that the app fees be slashed to a max of 10 percent from the current 20 percent. “This is the peak of disappointment for online drivers. We demand that the app fees be cut to only 10 percent. If not met, we’ll continue this protest on a larger scale,” Igun told Republika on Sunday, May 18, 2025. The planned protest in two days is a form of protest against the lack of government attention to alleged violations of regulations by some app operators. These regulations refer to Minister of Transportation Decree No. 1001 of 2022 which sets the maximum app fee at 20 percent. But, according to Igun, some operators are believed to be applying cuts of up to 50 percent, way above the stipulated limit. This is seen as detrimental to drivers and needs immediate action from the government.
Not really sure why this matters, but Igun mentioned that they have already tried to talk it out and study the issue. “This kind of cut is very harmful to drivers. Their income has dropped drastically, and many have become victims, even dying on the road because they have to chase income targets. This fee cut is no longer humane,” he stated. Igun added that they have gathered various evidence of violations committed by online motorcycle taxi app companies. These pieces of evidence have been handed over to the House of Representatives Commission V. “We hope that the government, through Commission V of the House of Representatives, which has received this evidence, can impose strict sanctions on app companies and mandate a maximum 10 percent app fee cut. Regulatory revision needs to be done promptly,” Igun emphasized. The protest by online drivers is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. The form of protest to be carried out is an off-bid action, by deactivating the app to not receive passenger service orders, food deliveries, or item deliveries. The association aims for around 500,000 online drivers from various cities across Indonesia to participate.
Maybe it’s just me, but it seems like the online drivers are really fed up with the high app fees and they’re ready to make some noise about it. It’s like they’ve had enough of being taken advantage of and they’re not gonna take it anymore. The fact that they’re planning a large-scale protest shows just how serious they are about getting their demands met. And the whole deactivating the app thing? That’s a pretty bold move, if you ask me. It’s like they’re saying, ‘Hey, if you’re not gonna listen to us, then we’re just gonna shut it all down.’ Let’s see how this all plays out on Tuesday.
