LagRide drivers accuse CIG of police intimidation, reject new app

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Drivers operating on the LagRide platform have accused the new management of the company, CIG Motors, of harassment and police intimidation. The drivers disclosed this to Technext at a press briefing in Lagos.

According to the drivers, trouble began after they tendered a series of complaints, a little over a week ago, about the new app introduced by CIG Motors. The complaints centred around poor performance of the app and several unfavorable policies introduced by the new management.

Speaking on the matter, the PRO of the Lagos Council of AUATON, Comrade Steven Iwindoye, who himself is a LagRide driver, said the company promised to resolve the issue in 24 hours, a promise they failed to keep.

Consequently, the drivers refused to work on the faulty app, a refusal, he says, was met with threats of harassment and intimidation.

“They promised 24 hours, but up till this month, they haven’t gotten back to us. When we saw this we talked to our captains and decided to shut down the app and not use it for now because the app is not working perfectly. When they realised that we were not working, they said that they were coming for us, that they would be arresting us and impounding our cars. They have already sent out the task force and police to come after us. But this cannot work,” the PRO said.

LagRide driver leaders

A female leader among the drivers, Ajani Islamiyat Titilayo, echoed the same sentiments, insisting that drivers have done nothing wrong to deserve such treatment.

“When they came up with this idea we reached out to them, went to their office to talk to them that as the existing operators of this platform, this is how we operate. Please consider us. And they promised us that they were going to get back to us within 24 hours. And this is more than one week now. And even after one week, what they are coming out with is a threat that they are going to be using the Lagos state task force to arrest us. What have we done?” she said.

The drivers threatened to embark on a peaceful protest if this latest appeal for a peaceful resolution goes unanswered.

LagRide drivers reject CIG app

Two weeks ago, Technext reported that LagRide began the process to change its management in late 2024. CIG Motors was touted as more preferred than the former manager, Zeno, because of their focus on electric cars.

However, the switch has not gone as smoothly as envisaged.

The first major problem is the app’s efficiency. The app does have a wallet or feature to make daily remittances. It also does not have spaces for riders to input their destination. Also, fare estimates are not displayed, making riders and passengers haggle about the destination and price.

Another issue is that the app does not have Google Maps, which many drivers consider to be the best and most robust for navigation. The map on the app, according to the drivers, does not cover nearly all of Lagos.

But perhaps, the most important shortcoming of the app is that it does not cover the entirety of Lagos. According to the drivers, the new PPP is only operational in highbrow areas like Victoria Island, representing a major limitation for drivers.

The majority of us are not working. Even the people who are working are not getting requests. If you want to get requests, you have to go to Victoria Island. Does Lagos State comprise only VI? What happened to Ikorodu, Epe, Festac, and the rest? If I pick a ride from Victoria Island to Berger, are you telling me to drive empty back to VI?” Steven Iwindoye said.

These shortcomings have prompted drivers to reject the app, stressing that it is counter-productive to their operations.

“We cannot work with these Chinese people. They want to kill us. The app they are talking about was built for just 5,000 cars. I was in Alausa last year when they wanted to launch this app. It’s for 5,000 cars, it is not for us. Let them go back to their 5,000 cars and leave us alone,” a driver, Taiwo Rufai, told Technext.

“We don’t welcome the app. I don’t see the reason why Ibile will abandon an indigenous app like Zeno and embrace a foreign app. This is Lagos, this is not China. Their app is for CIG, not for us. We signed a four-year contract to drive our own with Ibile. It is Ibile that gave us the allocation paper and contract paper. We did not sign with the Chinese. If CIG cannot continue with us, they should take us back to Zeno,” another driver, Kolawole David, said.

Technext reached out to the management of CIG for a response, but has yet to get a response from them as of press time. We will update the story as soon as we get a response.