Uber and Bolt e-cab drivers in Abuja under the National Coalition of Ridesharing Professional ( NACORP ) have commenced three day warning strike over alleged exploitation and extortion by e-hailing companies.
The embattled drivers said the action will last between May 31st and June 1st,2022 after which they may consider other drastic measures to get the authority’s to hearken to their demands,which include immediate upward review of e-cab fares to reflect the current economic reality in the country.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja,the Deputy Coordinator Administration, Fred Aleburu,NACORP, advocated the need for the profiling of the riders ( passengers ) for security purpose.
He implored government authorities to come to their aid by invoking relevant laws to regulate the activities and operations of the ride-hailing companies in Nigeria.
He lamented that apps companies have refused to review its fare as the companies continued to charged N300 for a trip despite the daunting economic situation in the country.
He also accused the companies of being insensitive to their plight despite all the effort to finding a lasting solution to the problem.
The drivers would cripple the operation of the companies for subjecting them to untold hardship and untimely death,he said.
He added: ” We have come together to organise this three day warning strike because since the inception of Uber and Bolt in Nigeria they have refused to profile their riders. We have been on several protests and yet our drivers are dying. When passengers enter our vehicles they kill the drivers and in the end both Uber and Bolt will not have valid identity documents of so- called passengers.
” This is simple let us share valid and equal identity with the riders, so when they perpetrate evil we will be able to know who did what. Secondly the fare has been reduced so much in this harsh economy that we are facing right now. Uber and bolt can give you a trip of N300 as drop off when we are buying fuel at a very high rate and we are servicing our car at a high cost. There is no servicing of vehicle now that is less than N10,000″.
