The Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Olubunmi Kuku, has said the agency had no role in Uber’s decision to exit Nigeria, insisting that FAAN’s actions were driven by concerns over passenger safety, accountability and the need to curb touting at airports.
The FAAN boss, while speaking with journalists on Friday at the airport, said Uber’s decision to leave the Nigerian market was a matter for the company, stressing that the airport authority was primarily concerned with protecting passengers and ensuring a seamless travel experience.
Recall that weeks ago, FAAN temporarily stopped e-hailing drivers from conducting commercial pick-ups at FAAN airports, pending the finalisation and execution of licence agreements.
Many had argued that FAAN stopped other e-hailing drivers to pave the way for its newly introduced airport e-hailing platform, ACHRAMS.
Clearing the air on the matter, Kuku said, “I work for the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, and my first responsibility is to ensure that our passengers are safe, protected, and have a seamless passenger experience.
“Regarding Uber, I can’t speak to their exit from Nigeria. I’m sure they have their own economic and regulatory considerations as to why they chose to exit.”
According to her, FAAN’s intervention followed complaints from passengers, particularly during the December holiday period, over unpleasant experiences with some e-hailing and car-hire services operating around the airports.
She added, “We received a lot of complaints, especially around the December holiday period, from passengers who used some of the e-hailing services, as well as car-hire services, and had very unpleasant experiences.”
She explained that the complaints ranged from intimidation to passengers being dropped off at unintended locations, with some cases involving more serious incidents.
The FAAN chief also alleged that some drivers operating for e-hailing platforms had exploited the airport system by posing as legitimate e-hailing operators before joining car-hire operators to charge passengers higher fares.
She said the development, coupled with complaints about touting at the airports, made it necessary for FAAN to introduce regulatory oversight for car-hire operators.
“We also had situations where some Uber and Bolt drivers would get out of their cars under the guise of coming into the airport as e-hailing drivers, and then join the car-hire operators to charge higher fares.
“Because there were widespread complaints about touting at the airport, it was important for us to provide some form of regulatory oversight for the car-hire operators,” she maintained.
The FAAN MD further said the app introduced by the authority was designed primarily to improve transparency and give passengers information about the operators and drivers conveying them to their destinations.
“The app that was developed was strictly focused on ensuring that passengers have visibility into who the car-hire companies are and who the driver taking them from Point A to Point B is,” she explained.
She stressed that FAAN was not operating the car-hire services or collecting payments on behalf of the drivers.
“FAAN does not collect money on behalf of the drivers. Those car-hire drivers are not FAAN drivers. All we do is provide an indication of the rates based on the destination you are travelling to,” she said.
Addressing concerns over the cost of airport car-hire services, she said the higher fares charged by such operators were largely linked to the nature of their business model, noting that passengers ultimately had the freedom to choose how to travel.
“It is the passenger’s choice whether to pre-book a car, use an e-hailing app, or use a car-hire service. We have no jurisdiction over that,” Kuku stated.
She, however, maintained that FAAN’s responsibility was to ensure that passengers could identify the people transporting them within the airport environment.
She said, “The only responsibility I have is to ensure that passengers have visibility into who is driving them and that there is accountability for those operating within our airports.”
On the disagreement between FAAN and e-hailing companies, the MD said the major sticking point was liability and responsibility for drivers operating on their platforms.
According to her, while the companies requested dedicated pick-up zones at the airports and FAAN agreed to the arrangement, the authority also expected the companies to accept responsibility for the conduct and safety of drivers using their platforms.
She said FAAN was uncomfortable with a situation where the companies would direct passengers to rely on safety features on their platforms while declining responsibility for the drivers.
She stressed, “One of the issues we were struggling with the e-hailing companies over was largely around liability clauses.
“But we also wanted them to take responsibility for the drivers. However, we were told that those drivers are not Uber’s drivers; rather, they are independent drivers.
“So, with regard to any safety concerns we raised, they wanted passengers to use the safety features available on their platforms. They did not want to take on that responsibility, and we had a major issue with that.”
The FAAN boss further dismissed suggestions that the authority’s policies contributed to Uber’s decision to leave Nigeria, saying the company had been considering its exit for some time.
She said, “I’m sure they had their own reasons, and I know they had been considering exiting Nigeria for a while, which is why we had a stumbling point with them.
“So, it has nothing to do with FAAN. Again, the airport is just a small part of the wider area in which they operate within Nigeria.”
