The drivers of taxi apps will stop services on October 6th, in Luanda, to demand price adjustments and improved working conditions, according to information from the Association of Personalized Taxis of Angola (Astpa).
Speaking to Lusa, the secretary general of Astpa, Mandanje Francisco, informed that drivers from the Heetch companies, Yango, T'LEVA and UGO intended to hold a “parade” on September 20th, but it was prevented by the police due to lack of authorization from the provincial government of Luanda.
"We wrote to the provincial government, but they did not receive the letter, they claimed that the date was too close. We tried to check in on Friday, but they refused to receive the letter”, he said, adding that on October 6th the strike will run from 06:00 to 18:00.
Despite the impediment, highlighted the secretary general of Astpa, the drivers were mostly concentrated in front of the Cine Atlântico, some at the door of the Heetch and others at Yango facilities.
Mandanje Francisco said that the association, which has existed since 2017 and has around 5.000 members, has registered numerous complaints from this class of drivers, regarding prices, affected by galloping inflation, and about the financial demands made by companies, as well as of the physical effort required.
"The class of app-based taxis was not covered by the gasoline price subsidy, which led to much greater difficulties”, said the person in charge, highlighting that the complaints also have to do with the daily or monthly amount that each company demands from taxi drivers.
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The person in charge also said that there are companies that require a monthly amount of between Kz 150,000 (€169,9) and Kz 180,000 (€203,9), which is possible to achieve, however, causing greater physical wear and tear.
"These services emerged to provide comfort, and demanding a target of Kz 150,000 (€169,9) per week is exhausting, and puts the customer at risk, who sought comfort and safety at the same time, in the private taxi service.”, he assured.
The general secretary of Astpa revealed that, according to the association's statistics, “many accidents with vehicles identified with the logos of application companies".
"There are between two and three accidents every week, mainly on weekends. There have been weekends where we have had seven accidents, in one of which both passengers lost their lives.”, said Mandanje Francisco, considering the companies’ policies “abusive”.
"Our idea is not to impose or tarnish [companies], because these companies also have a very fundamental role. We just want to negotiate with them, one of them is Yango, we had the opportunity to write to them, they received the letter, we were called, we negotiated, but we were forgotten”He added.
The issue of security is also important, highlighted the person responsible, admitting that reports about robberies and deaths are a fact, calling on companies to consult the association before hiring drivers.
