Malaysians have in recent days used Grab and Gojek apps that provide ride-hailing and food delivery services to order gifts to delivery riders in Indonesia, Malaysian news agency Bernama reported on Monday (Sep 1).
Kuala Lumpur Facebook user Mach Pi, for instance, posted about how he spent about 100,000 rupiah (US$6) ordering items for a delivery rider in the Indonesian city of Surabaya.
Sharing screengrabs of his order, Mach Pi suggested choosing a nearby mosque lobby as the drop-off point and adding in the “remarks” section that the items are for the delivery rider’s use.
Indonesian news site VOI reported that social media user @sighyam started the ball rolling on X on Aug 30.
“Guys I just found out that you can support Indonesian Grab riders who are still out on the streets because Grab allows you to make deliveries in other SE Asian countries?? OKAYYYY,” @sighyam wrote in a post that has been reposted 72,000 times.
Indonesian netizens have responded with messages of thanks, VOI reported.
According to Grab’s website, users have been able to send gifts on-demand to people in Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand using its cross-border gifting capability called 100+ Cities Delivery since December 2021.
On Aug 30, Grab announced it had launched an initiative called “treat a driver” on GrabFood. Users may purchase food from participating merchants to support its “driver-partners”, the tech firm said.
“This initiative is aimed at supporting partners who continue to work to meet their daily needs, and is not related to the demonstrations,” Grab added.
A Gojek spokesperson said customers in Indonesia can purchase meal sets through GoFood’s “treat your driver” feature to show appreciation and support for its driver-partners.
“The feature, activated during moments of giving, has been welcomed by customers during this period as a gesture of solidarity with driver-partners,” she said.
CNA has asked both companies about the number of orders made in support of the drivers and riders in Indonesia.
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