inDrive confirms Lagos Assembly summons, to take part in public hearing

A leading ride-hailing company in Lagos, inDrive has confirmed that it will be taking part in a public hearing by the Lagos State House of Assembly. The company disclosed this to Technext following an inquiry about the matter.

Technext had earlier reported that the public hearing was called for following a petition by the Lagos Chapter of the Amalgamated Union of App-based Transporters of Nigeria (AUATON) led by Comrade Jaiyesimi Azeez. In the petition, the union demanded the reclassification of drivers to workers by the app companies and granted full working benefits.

The union also demanded driver and passenger verification to curb the rising spate of violence between drivers and passengers, and an analysis of the commission structure paid by drivers, noting that the companies extract above the 25 per cent commission they charge.

Acting on the petition, the Lagos State Assembly summoned ride-hailing companies like inDrive, Uber and Bolt to a hearing on Tuesday, June 16. Responding, an inDrive spokesperson confirmed that the company was aware of the summons and is ready to answer.

“Yes, we are aware of the invitation and confirm that we will be represented at the hearing tomorrow. The hearing aims to address key concerns raised in the petition submitted by the drivers’ union (AUATON), including the proposed reclassification of drivers as employees, the implementation of passenger verification protocols in response to rising attacks against drivers, and issues related to pricing and commission structures. We look forward to participating in the discussion and contributing to a constructive dialogue on these important matters,” inDrive said.

inDrive’s participation will be interesting

inDrive’s participation in the Lagos Assembly hearing is one many observers will be keen to look into. This is because the platform has been host to most of the driver/rider clashes and other incidents witnessed in the Lagos ride-hailing space. Indeed, the AUATON petition specifically points to an attack that took place in the platform as a reference on the need for security.

In that incident, the victim, Pascaline, said she booked a ride on inDrive shortly after she closed from work at 2 am. During the ride, the driver took a different turn and when she confronted the driver, he stopped the car at a deserted spot. He then drew out a knife and robbed the passenger, dispossessing her of her phones, ATM cards and other effects before stabbing her.

inDrive rejected the particular incident, stating that it did not occur on its platform. But that incident was not in isolation as before then, a driver operating on the platform had assaulted a female rider, following a dispute over air conditioning.

Narrating the incident, the lady, Aderemi, said the assault happened after she ordered a ride from the Ikoyi area of Lagos to Ogudu at about 2 AM on Sunday. Because the driver refused to put on his air conditioning, the lady refused to pay the full fare, a refusal which earned her a beating.

inDrive suspended the driver as they did another driver who assaulted yet another female driver following a dispute over offline trips. The incidents of assault on the platform became so rife that Technext undertook an investigation into the matter. The investigation revealed that a major cause of attacks on the platform is down to another issue to be treated at the public hearing; pricing.

Since rebranding from inDriver, inDrive has implemented an aggressive marketing strategy that saw it exploit the stiff competition among drivers to allow riders to set their own prices. What this meant, according to drivers, was that riders could offer ridiculous prices and be gauaranteed that some desperate driver would accept it.

Even though it would slash its commission down to 10 per cent, the drivers still feel they do not get value for their services on the platform and this feeling makes them angry, enough to embark on a one-day boycott of the app specifically due to its pricing.

See also: Drivers boycott inDrive app, from April 1, to protest low fares, underpayment

Even though it has largely operated a model that has given it the largest share of the Lagos ride-hailing market, it will, be quite interesting to hear it defend this model vis-a-vis the AUATON demands that neccesitated the Lagos Assembly hearing.