Disappointed, but not surprised.
A known foreign YouTuber recounts his recent experience of being scammed by a trike driver and his accomplices who insisted he pay 550 php for a five to six-minute ride during his travel to a mall in Manila, which he posted on his social media platforms on Saturday.
Dwaine Woolley, a famous foreign vlogger for his fluency in Tagalog, Bisaya, and Waray, has amassed a wide following on Facebook and YouTube with his “English Only Prank” and content which constantly earned millions of views and reactions. Now, in his latest vlog titled “Dealing with Scammers in Manila,” warned his viewers about this latest modus operandi he encountered and the videos he took from it.
According to the Australian influencer, he was going to a known mall chain in Manila from a hotel in Ermita, near the US Embassy. Although it was a 10-minute walk, he decided to ride a trike to arrive at the mentioned place.
In his recorded video when he asked the driver about the fare, the man with his identity remained anonymous, responded with 50 php. While riding the trike, Woolley detailed that the trike stopped two times to pick up the driver’s two companions. A hundred meters away from the mall, the motorbike malfunctioned so they stopped to the side to fix the vehicle. When he got out and was about to pay, the driver rejected the 50 php payment and instead started insisting on a 550 php fare.
“All of three of them are backing each other up. His two friends are supporting him. Sinusuportahan nila ‘yung kasinungalingan niya na 550 daw ‘yung rate. Akala nila dahil foreigner ako, mayaman ako. Hindi ako mayaman, maputi lang. [All three of them are backing each other up. His two friends are supporting him. They are supporting his lie that the rate is 550. They think because I’m a foreigner, I’m rich. I’m not rich, just fair-skinned],” he jokingly told to his subscribers.
“I said, bro, matagal na akong nakatira rito sa Pilipinas, dito sa Manila. Alam ko kung magkano ang rate ng mga tricycle. Hindi talaga aabot ng 550 ang 600-meter na route. Sobrang malapit na ‘yun ‘e [I said, ‘Bro, I’ve been living here in the Philippines for a long time. I know how much a tricycle’s rate],” he continued.
“So I said, ‘hindi ko talaga bayaran ‘yung 550, boss, okay? Sabi mo 50 pesos kanina ‘pag sakay ko, ngayon pagdating natin dito, naging 550 na lang bigla?’ And then I said, ‘mga scammer pala kayo!’ And then, grabe, galit na galit sila. [So I said, ‘I really can’t pay the 550, boss, okay? You said it was 50 pesos when I got on earlier, but now that we’re here, it suddenly became 550?’ And then I said, ‘you guys are scammers!’ Wow, they got really angry.]
With both insisting their a different price, a heated confrontation ensues between Woolley, the driver, and his two companions. The popular influencer’s recording, which documents the whole argument, showed a woman who is said to be one of the driver’s companions, started to spew foul and cursed language at Woolley.
He asked for help from a security guard in the nearest establishment as two of the three individuals were still following him. The said guard verified that the price should been 50 php only and not 550 php. Meanwhile, the trike driver was continuously stressing that it was the usual fare for them as it was a “private service.”
Woolley further negotiated with the two with 200 PHP, but they wanted a higher pay of 300 PHP. In the end, he gave 250 php, despite the fare being unreasonable for a 600-meter ride.
“To all foreigners who are staying in Manila, that are riding tricycles and things like that, make sure you take a video with you when you ride a tricycle. Make sure you do that because even if you know how much they’re supposed to charge, scammers will lie to you, and they’ll say it’s 50 PS and when you arrive, they’ll pretend they said 550 or some other ridiculous price,” he advised to his audience.
“Make sure you take a video so you can show them. Make sure the audio is clear that they said 50 pesos,” the foreigner emphasized.
He concluded his less than 8-minute vlog by sending words of appreciation to the security guard who assisted him throughout the incident.
Woolley’s vlog, it already garnered 2.8 million views, 100,000 reactions, and thousands of comments and shares on Facebook. The majority of the social media users felt outraged and embarrassed by this incident detailed by the Australian, telling him that he should have reported it to the police.
May this serve as a reminder to other commuters to be more mindful of drivers who overcharge. Everyone, beware of overcharging drivers!
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