J&T Express apologizes again after Duterte’s shut down threat (2024)

Published Jul 2, 2020, 10:19:11 PM

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 2) — J&T Express has apologized again to the public after President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to shut down the delivery service provider over mishandling of delivery packages.

The courier service found itself in hot water after a video, showing J&T Express staff mishandling parcels and not wearing protective gears, went viral on social media.

The President got irked and ordered government agencies to investigate customer complaints against J&T Express Philippines.

“We appreciate the concern expressed by the President towards our customers’ welfare as well as the well-being of our many partners and employees,” the company’s vice president, Zoe Chi, said in a statement.

“Furthermore, we will cooperate with the government in any investigation that it will conduct," Chi said. "We are committed to improving our services for the benefit of the public.”

Among those probing J&T Express are the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG).

J&T Express Philippines Brand Manager Leonardo Alampay said the company has submitted the findings of its internal investigation to CIDG on Wednesday.

Alampay added the management has already sanctioned the personnel who were caught on the video carelessly throwing parcels and packages onto a van.

He also confirmed the employee who recorded the video was also penalized since taking photos and clips inside J&T warehouses is prohibited.

The brand manager, however, said employees who will catch their colleagues doing such unacceptable practices can report directly to their supervisors and not through social media.

Chia, meanwhile, reiterated that the viral video was an isolated case and does not reflect the company's standards on the proper handling of customer shipments.

“The company has 24/7 monitoring across all its facilities, branches, and warehouses," Chi said. "Each of these facilities is also manned by security guards and employs a real-time tracking system."

The firm also said its communication lines are open for customers whose items were damaged or lost during the delivery process.

“In the event that the parcel is damaged, they can be identified in our facility, be traced and accounted for either in our branches, warehouses and down to the very name of the rider who delivers these parcels to their recipient,” Alampay said.

“Any parcel that is lost, no matter how improbable that might be regarding the system that we are using, they can be compensated for justly and fairly through our claim system," he added.

Customers can also contact the J&T Express Philippines 24/7 hotline at (02) 8911-1888 or send an e-mail at customerCA@jtexpress.ph.

They can also message the company’s Facebook page ‘J&T Express Philippines’ or Instagram or Twitter accounts with the handle ‘@jntexpressph.’