Drivers of ride-hailing apps – Bolt, Uber and Yango – starting today, May 11, 2021, have commenced a two-day strike action to demand for increased fares from users of the platforms.
The drivers who come together to constitute the Ghana Online Drivers Union, have justified the strike action attributing it to the recent hike in fuel prices as well as security concerns among others.
“The users of the app should stay away from requesting rides. Some might want to be online but if the riders don’t request, the app operators will also notice that there is something going on. So it’s taking effect today. We would encourage every online driver to for our own safety and for the betterment of the work that we are doing to stay offline so that the app operators will know that we are serious,” said spokesperson of the Union, Benjamin Arthur who called on users of the platforms to cooperate with them as they demand for what is due them [drivers].
Also speaking to the media was president of the Association, Francis Tenge, who noted that the hike in fuel prices is negatively hampering their operations as the hailing app operators are not open to review fares upwards.
“The base fare on Uber and Bolt is Ghs 4 as compared to that of a taxi which is also Ghs 4, but they don’t pay service fee we do. And so an increase in fuel prices means we aren’t making any money and our wives are complaining,” he averred.
He further raised some concerns with regards to their working conditions and also called on government to look into the activities of ride-hailing apps.
“We are also calling on the government to regulate the app companies. Because of competition, they are all doing whatever they want to gain the market. So if the government comes in and regulates the market, everything will be normal,” he added.
Fuel prices in the first few days of this month shot up from Ghs 5.45 to Ghs 6.5 after the introduction of new taxes in the 2021 budget statement and the upward revision in the Price-Build-Up (PBU) margins of petrol and diesel by the National Petroleum Authority (NPA).
The increment in fuel price as well as introduction of other taxes, the government argues is to raise enough revenues to spend in the economy thereby stimulating and quickening the recovery of the economy from the Covid-19 pandemic.
