Uber And Bolt Drivers Go On Strike In Abuja

Hundreds of Uber and Bolt e-cab drivers in Abuja began a three-day warning strike on Monday.

The protesters under the aegis of the National Coalition of Ridesharing Professionals (NACORP) are protesting against alleged exploitation and extortion by the e-hailing companies.

The drivers are pushing for an immediate increase in e-cab charges to reflect the country’s current economic reality.

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Hundreds of Uber and Bolt e-cab drivers in Abuja launched a three-day warning strike on Monday under the aegis of the National Coalition of Ridesharing Professionals (NACORP) in protest of the e-hailing companies’ alleged exploitation and extortion.

The drivers are pushing for an immediate increase in e-cab charges to reflect the country’s current economic reality.

Commuters were stranded at numerous bus stations as a result of the drivers’ strike, which slowed down movement and economic activity in the nation’s capital.

On behalf of the organisation, NACORP Deputy Coordinator, Administration, Fred Aleburu, spoke to press on Monday and urged for the profile of riders (passengers) for security reasons.

He urged the government to help them by enacting suitable legislation to control the ride-hailing businesses’ activities and operations.

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Despite the country’s dire economic position, Aleburu claims that the app developers have failed to revise its fare, continuing to charge N300 for a trip.

Despite all efforts to find a long-term solution to the problem, he accused the firms of being unsympathetic to their plight.

He wondered why the service providers were only interested in profiling only drivers and reluctant to request for the valid means of identification of their customers (riders).

He vowed that they would cripple the operation of the companies for subjecting them to untold hardship and untimely death.

“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 that 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 and that is what 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.”

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