Amid rising fuel prices, some delivery riders resort to selling their bodies to survive

Motorcycle delivery service is one of the jobs that boomed amid the pandemic as people turned to ordering food and even groceries online. Riders were grateful to earn income for their families and customers appreciated their role in keeping the community safe and the economy moving.

With the rise of fuel prices and basic commodities, however, delivery riders are now struggling to make ends meet. It has become so difficult to put food on the table that some of them have been forced to sell their own bodies.

In an episode of “Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho,” two riders shared how they ended up giving “extra service” in exchange for extra income.

“Sumali po kami sa group chat ng mga rider po na may mga extra service,” said Kardo, not his real name. “‘Yung sa group namin ‘yung mga member, libo na rin po.”

(“We joined a group chat of riders offering extra service. The group has thousands of members already.”)

Compared to the usual P500 per day of income, extra service nets them around P1,000 to P3,000 per transaction. The extra money is difficult to resist for riders like Kardo, who needed cash after his wife fell ill.

“Sa ganung kalakaran kuha mo agad ‘yung pera. ‘Di katulad ‘yung sa papasukin mo sa isang maghapon sa katapusan mo pa siya makukuha,” he said.

(“With this scheme, you get the money right away. It’s different from monthly earnings from regular jobs.”)

Another rider, Zus (also not his real name), said someone referred him to the extra service gig.

“May lumapit po sa akin isang habal sabi niya, ‘Baka gusto mo ng extra service? ‘Yung kahit hindi ka tumambay dito sa isang araw makukuha mo agad ‘yung quota mo.’ Nu’ng una po, akala ko, extra lang sa mga courier, hindi po pala,” he said.

(“Someone approached me, ‘Do you want to do extra service? You’ll be able to hit your quota right away without working for a whole day.’ At first, I thought it’s just extra courier jobs, but apparently not.”)

Zus did not want to do it, but like Kardo, his family’s needs made him desperate for cash. His eight-month-old child has a lung disease, which forced him to take the risk.

“Nu’ng una po kasi ayaw ko kasi iligal po. Kaya ko lang naman po nagawa ‘to dahil din po sa baby ko po kasi e nasugod po siya sa ospital,” he said.

(“I didn’t want to do it at first because it’s illegal. The only reason I did it is because my baby was rushed to the hospital.”)

Despite the extra money, Kardo and Zus feel guilty over engaging in prostitution. Aside from setting aside their own dignity, they are afraid that it can ruin their relationships with their families.

“Nandiri ako, nu’ng time na ‘yun. ‘Yung buong katawan ko, gusto kong baldehan ng mainit na tubig e. Naisip ko ‘yung asawa ko parang nakokonsensya ako,” Kardo said.

(“I was disgusted at that time. I wanted to pour hot water over my whole body. I thought about my wife and my conscience haunted me.”)

Health Expert Dr. Cheridine Oro Josef advised that we should not put our health at risk doing this kind of practice.

“Ang number one natin na makuha sa ganitong mga infectious diseases, mga sexually transmitted disease, ibang klaseng sakit na pwedeng makuha gaya ng HIV. COVID, there’s monkeypox. Alam ko po napakahirap ng buhay ngayon pero hindi po ito ang paraan. Kikita po tayo pero magkakasakit naman po tayo.”

(“There’s this risk of getting infected with HIV, COVID-19 and even monkeypox. These are very difficult times, but we should not risk our health.”)

Zus, for his part, said he intends to stop giving extra eservice and look for work abroad instead.

“‘Pag nalaman po ito ng pamilya ko pati ‘yung baby ko paglaki niya ano na lang ‘yung sasabihin niya sa akin na ganito,” he said.

(“If my family finds out about it, what would my baby say when he grows up?”)

Totoy Mackie, a 43-year-old rider, feels guilty for another reason: many of his clients are younger than him.

“Siguro may mga 21 lang ata ‘yun. ‘Naiilang ako parang ka-edad mo lang anak ko.’ ‘Shot tayong dalawa.’ Kinaya ko naman bandang huli nu’ng medyo may tama na kami,” he said.

(“One of them was probably just 21. ‘I feel weird because they’re just as old as my child.’ I managed to do it in the end when we got drunk.”)

Sometimes, he meets his client in a motel. Even though he does not want to do it, he endures it as long as no one can recognize him.

“Kinakapos kami sa bahay. Nagipit ako kaya naisip na ako maghanap ng sideline,” he said.

(“We’re short on budget at home. That’s why I thought of finding a sideline.”)

What’s also alarming is that this ‘extra service’ is being used by others to scam people.

Mark, not his real name, had fallen victim to this scheme.

“Naghahanap lang akong makakasamang mag-stroll, hindi ko in-expect na mayroon siyang i-o-offer na extra service.”

(“I was just looking for someone to accompany me, I did not expect a rider would offer extra services.”)

However, when they arrived at the motel, Mark realized he had fallen victim to a new modus operandi.

“Kinuha niya na ‘yung pera. Naisipan kong lumapit sa barangay pero natakot akong i-judge ako na kasalanan ko ‘yun kung bakit nangyari sa akin ‘yun.”

(“He took my money and left. I thought of going to the authorities to report it, but I was scared of what people would think of me. They might blame me for what happened.”)

An LTO Road Safety Warrior also reminded the public about what these ‘extra service’ schemes could lead to.

“Kung may nagreklamo, kung member sila ng any organization, baka tanggalin sila. Sa violation, part of reckless driving then on the act of doing those things sa kalye baka maaksidente sila o sila ang makaaksidente.”

(“If someone were to file a complaint, they might get kicked out of their organization. Doing these acts on the road would also fall under reckless driving, they might get involved in an accident.”)

For sociologist Atty. Emmanuel Caliwan, this kind of practice is a societal problem that needs to be addressed.

“Ang solusyon dito ay kailangan nating maayos ‘yung social inequalities na meron tayo kasi kung bibigyan natin sila ng trabaho na magbibigay sa kanila ng sapat na pagkakakitaan, hindi naman sila papasok sa ganitong uri ng trabaho,” he said.

(“We have to look into these social inequalities that we have been unable to solve. If these people were given a job that would sufficiently provide for their needs, they would not result to these illegal practices.”)

Meanwhile, Jepoy Ellamil, the national president of Rouser Group of the Philippines, an NGO Riders Group, said that these things should not be taken against the entire riding community.

“Hindi naman po lahat ng riders ay gumagawa ng ganyan. Huwag n’yo pong lahatin. Huwag naman po sana nating hayaan masira ang riding community,” he said.

(“Not all riders engage in this kind of practice. We hope that the public would not let this ruin the riding community’s reputation.”)

We also brought this practice to the attention of Facebook (Meta), where these illegal transactions happen.

According to a Meta spokesperson, “We do not allow content that facilitates, encourages or coordinates sexual encounters or commercial sexual services between adults and we have removed the reported Groups for violating this policy. We encourage everyone in our community to use our reporting tools to let us know if they see something they think might break our rules.”

Some of these groups have since been taken down, but others continue to operate.

Asked if they have any message to authorities, Zus pointed to the current economic situation and how it affects his daily life.

“‘Yung mga presyo ng bilihin then ‘yung sa gas, sobrang taas po talaga. Kadalasan ‘yung kinikita kong 500 pesos, ‘yung mabibili ko ulam lang. Halos wala na rin natitira,” he said.

(“The price of the goods are too high. I can only buy food with my P500 income. Almost nothing is left.”)

Kardo and Totoy Mackie, meanwhile, hoped the public would not judge them instantly for what they did.

“Wala naman kaming tinatapakan na tao. Ginagawa lang namin ‘to dahil sa pangangailangan sa pang araw-araw namin,” he said.

(“We’re not hurting anyone. We’re just doing this so we can earn money for our families.”)

To their fellow riders, Zus said: “Kung masipag naman kayong mag-grind, mag-grind na lang kayo sa tamang paraan.”

(“Just keep working hard. ”)

—MGP, GMA News