Afrigather Ibile Holdings will examine companions who subjected drivers to poor working situations after recovering vehicles from the companions.
LagRide, the Lagos state-backed ride-hailing platform, has recovered 21 vehicles from certainly one of its companions, one Idris Shonuga, as a part of efforts to reform its asset financing mannequin with drivers on its platform. The asset financing mannequin signifies that LagRide automobiles stay the corporate’s property till the driving force completes cost for it. Drivers must pay ₦8,900 each day for 4 years to say car possession.
Explaining the necessity for the reforms, an government director of Ibile Holdings, LagRide’s mother or father firm, Oyekanmi Elegushi, advised TechCabal that Shonuga held 21 vehicles in his custody unused for six months. This resulted in losses for Ibile Holdings who secured the vehicles through a mortgage facility with Polaris Financial institution.
“The vehicles we seized have been from IOS Holdings [a company owned by Idris Shonuga],” Elegushi mentioned. “The vehicles have been seized as a result of they have been meant to earn cash however weren’t earning money. Which means you don’t want it. Every of the vehicles was anticipated to remit ₦8,900 each day to LagRide however didn’t.”
Elegushi mentioned Shonuga held on to a few additional vehicles and refused to let go of them, an act that was criminally motivated. “We’ve submitted the case to [the police station at] Alagbon,” he added.
Shonuga admitted to proudly owning IOS Holdings, an organization that recruits drivers and offers them automobiles to drive for LagRide. “They [LagRide] mentioned categorically they don’t want companions after bringing them on board,” Elegushi mentioned, in response to the allegations in opposition to him. “IOS helps [LagRide] to get good drivers. We all the time get drivers according to what the federal government mentioned the scheme is created for.”
Providing an evidence for the idle vehicles found in his possession, Shonuga advised TechCabal that gasoline shortage was a part of the components that made some drivers abandon the vehicles with him.
Journey-hailing drivers, beneath the Amalgamated Union of App-Based mostly Transporters of Nigeria (AUATON), have criticised the asset financing mannequin of LagRide. In response to them, LagRide’s companions make the most of the mannequin to build up vehicles and demand unrealistic returns from the drivers.
“We’ve advised LagRide that the [asset financing] scheme is a killer,” the final secretary of AUATON, Ibrahim Ayoade, advised TechCabal in an interview. “In totality, it’s a failure of the federal government, particularly the Lagos authorities, who promised drivers employment. We critiqued this mannequin, however they used our members in opposition to each other.”
The state of affairs at LagRide has reawoken the talk of the viability of the asset financing mannequin within the Nigerian mobility sector. Earlier this 12 months, Moove drivers protested against the model because of the steep repayments.
Ayoade is of the opinion that the Lagos state authorities can not impose vehicles on e-hailing drivers: the mannequin the mobility service operates doesn’t enable drivers to register their very own vehicles on the platform like they will with different ride-hailers like Uber and Bolt. They’ll solely use LagRide-branded vehicles on the platform.
“If the federal government needs to do an empowerment scheme, it may give drivers grants to purchase vehicles. You can’t impose vehicles on drivers!” Ayoade mentioned when he spoke to TechCabal.
He additionally believes that LagRide must be an empowerment platform that provides drivers vehicles as an alternative of them paying for it for a interval of 4 years beneath the asset financing mannequin.
Ayoade nevertheless vowed to work in the very best curiosity of susceptible drivers beneath their union that have been caught up on this difficulty.
