Passengers who used the airport this week were met with a shocker that the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) had placed a restriction on e-hailing services like Uber, Bolt, In-drive and others within the airport and pushed forward a platform with fares reportedly up to N30,000 which is five times the normal rate.

As expected, there was outrage which forced FAAN backtrack and a statement from the Director, Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Henry Agbebire, was released in the early hours of Thursday explaining what went down. FAAN said that for nearly a decade, it has been working to address challenges arising from the activities of commercial and e-hailing vehicles within the airport environment, including increasing cases of passenger solicitation and touting, unregulated operations, random pick-ups, and associated safety, security and accountability concerns.

The authority explained the reason behind its controversial decision to restrict e-hailing services, citing operational inefficiencies that have plagued airport transportation management. It said these challenges, which in some instances involve drivers operating across more than one platform, made it necessary for the Authority to strengthen the management and visibility of commercial transportation within the airport.

FAAN further stated that it was in response to these concerns that it introduced the Airport Car Hire Rank Management System, (ACHRAMS) a queue-management and airport transportation management system which was to be the solution to the growing transportation management issues within the airport.

However, the introduction of ACHRAMS sparked backlash especially because of the cost associated with the new platform. The system’s fares, which in some instances went as N30,000 was heavily criticised by the general public, who compared the rates to the fares by other e-hailing taxis.

While defending the ACHRAMS system, FAAN said ACHRAMS is not an e-hailing application and was never conceived as a competitor to Uber, Bolt or any other taxis as its function is limited to the management of airport car-hire and the authorised operations associated with them. FAAN said it supports healthy competition and does not seek to create or promote a monopoly in airport transportation.

While addressing the rates of ACHRAMS, FAAN said they were not new but rather pre-existing airport taxi fares that had been in place independently of the application. The Authority also said ACHRAMS was introduced to enable more transparency and visibility.

It said: “What ACHRAMS introduced was greater visibility and transparency around the prevailing airport-taxi rates, making the cost more readily apparent to passengers. FAAN recognises, however, that the comparison with the lower fares passengers had become accustomed to through e-hailing platforms understandably heightened public concern.”

FAAN acknowledged passenger concerns regarding costs and the inconvenience caused during the period when e-hailing services were restricted and apologised for it. The Authority then concluded by announcing that it has reached an agreement with Bolt. It said: “The Authority is pleased to announce that, following constructive engagements, FAAN and Bolt have reached an agreeable operational framework and Bolt is cleared to commence its services at FAAN-managed airports immediately. The resolution demonstrates that it is possible to protect the integrity and security of the airport environment while preserving the convenience and freedom of choice that e-hailing services provide to passengers. Passengers remain free to choose from available transportation options that best meet their needs and that its responsibility is to ensure that whichever authorised service they choose operates within a safe, secure, orderly and accountable airport environment.”

Nigerians react

Despite FAAN’s efforts to explain its position, the responses from Nigerians were scathing. Many took to social media to blast FAAN accusing the Authority of creating a problem that didn’t exist in the first place.

An X user, Alexander Ehanire, said: “FAAN, respectfully, you created a problem that did not exist and then designed a system to solve what nobody knows. That is the real issue here. Uber, Bolt and others already show me the driver, the car, plate number, price, route, location, rating and receipt. The entire trip is digitally traceable and I’m happy. What additional ‘visibility’ are we looking for? Your airport domiciled taxis are the only ones that are lacking behind with their laminated armed robber priced trips. What are you doing about that? Instead, you somehow found a way to insert yourself into the part of the market that was already working. This habit has to stop. Every successful private sector innovation cannot become an invitation for the government to create another platform, concession or collection point. Your job is to regulate the airport. FAAN does not need to become Uber’s Uber or Bolt’s Bolt.”

Another user, Demola, voiced frustration over what they perceived as unnecessary government intervention, saying: “You created a problem that didn’t, and shouldn’t even exist, then turn around to proffer solutions that nobody asked for. The drivers pay toll, parking fees, and taxes already. The companies also pay taxes. Why can’t you just leave them alone? Don’t be stupid, please!”

Another user, Cyn raised questions about FAAN’s motivations, saying: “How are you resolving a problem you created by yourself? These drivers have been operating in and around the airport for years till you people and your greed woke up.”

A user identified as Ex-Nigerian expressed concerns about what seemed like a preferential treatment given to Bolt through the agreement: The user said: “The problem created by your underlings and this sham of an attempt to ‘resolve it’ is Nigerian anyhowness in its full glory. A non-existent problem was created and now in an attempt to ‘solve’ it, you have created a problem for the other e-hailing services who are not under this new ‘agreement’ because I believe you guys putting Bolt inside this memo is not a mistake. At what point do you people not see how your actions affect common people, or you think it’s only rich people that fly?”

A user, Seun Adeola linked FAAN’s actions to the issues of pricing and levies within the airport ecosystem, saying: “There was no problem before you created one. You inflated taxi prices through your extortionate levies on the drivers. Your officials scapegoated regular Uber/Bolt/Indrive drivers because they were competitive on price. You forced us to pay outrageous amounts for 2005 Camry rides.”

Adeolu challenged FAAN’s claim that the fare structure was independent of ACHRAMS saying: “You people are pathetic liars, what do you mean you didn’t set the price and it’s independent of the application? You own the app, you can’t feign ignorance to the fares on the app. Normal hailing rides are charging btw 8-10k from the airport to ikeja while the app is charging 30k.”

Another user, Luqman Lawal offered a suggestion on what should be done saying: “This isn’t solving any problem. E-hailing should operate freely at the airport (there’s a drop-off and pickup section, fgs!). Let me order a ride and get picked up at the car park. Whether I’m using Bolt, Indrive, or Uber should not be FAAN’s headache.”

The overwhelming sentiment expressed across social media platforms was that FAAN had manufactured a crisis to justify the creation of ACHRAMS, had benefited from restricting competition through inflated fares, and that the lifting of the ban, even with the Bolt agreement, did not address the fundamental criticism that e-hailing services should operate freely without government interference or the creation of competing government-backed platforms.

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