TAXI FOCUS from Nigeria
SIX MONTHS JAIL FOR NIGERIAN DRIVER WHO STRIPPED OVER LOCKDOWN ARREST
Last month in Nigeria’s capital city, Abuja, a taxi driver who had stripped naked in protest at the siezure of his car by the FCT Covid-19 Enforcement Team, was sentenced. The scene was captured by African Independent Television and the footage went viral. The convict, Emmanuel Imhoudu now has to serve two months in prison or pay a fine and also make a public apology on any television network. Imhoudu had said hunger pushed him out of his home in spite of the lockdown order issued by President Muhammadu Buhari. He said he stripped naked because he wanted everyone to know that “all was not well with him and his family.”
TAXI DRIVER BEATEN TO DEATH BY SECURITY OPERATIVES IN NIGERIA
A taxi driver was reportedly beaten to death recently by security oper- atives, for carrying passengers who were not wearing face masks. An eyewitness @ayebechristopher, revealed that the incident occurred at Marian in Calabar, Cross River State’s capital. He said the driver who was wearing a face mask when he was stopped, was beaten by security operatives till he collapsed. He was confirmed dead later. The Instagram user wrote: “The World Health Organisation said only wear a mask if you’re sick or taking care of a sick person but the Governor of CRS has his own eye service, so they’ll say he’s fighting Corona too. He said you must wear a nose mask or else you must stay indoors. But why not give the Law Enforcement Agents you’re using proper instructions. Now they’ve killed someone. Are you’re happy now? Is that what other States with Covid-19 cases are doing? No confirmed case in Calabar yet and you’ve started killing people. This is really sad.”
reckless driving, moves millions of people every day, most of them lower-income earners. More like buses than the taxis of New York or London, the rumbling 16-seaters are the wheels of Africa’s most industrialised economy. The financial package includes a senior loan of $10 million and an associated facility of about $97 million, and the agreement carries an eight-year tenure and includes a six-month grace period, the bank said in a statement. “The bank’s funding will ultimately support SA Taxi’s continued investment in the taxi industry and its strategy of enabling taxi operators to replace old vehicles with newer, safer and lower emis- sion minibus taxis,” it said. The facility is expected to contribute a significant component of SA Taxi’s funding requirement over the next three years, the bank said. SA Taxi is a financing company specialising in the taxi industry. It also provides specialised minibus taxi insurance, vehicle tracking, maintenance, and refurbishment services to taxi operators.
from Singapore
CABBIE LIVES OUT OF TAXI IN SINGAPORE AFTER BEING STRANDED BY LOCKDOWN
from South Africa
TAXI INDUSTRY IN SOUTH AFRICA PLEADS WITH PRIVATE BUSINESS TO USE SERVICE
On April 22 the African Development Bank and SA Taxi Develop- ment Finance signed a $100 million loan agreement to support taxi operators with limited access to finance from traditional financiers. South Africa’s minibus taxi industry, scorned by other motorists for
MAY 2020
Malaysia’s lockdown in March saw many displaced workers in Singa- pore, most of whom had been crossing the Causeway daily to get to work. While many compa- nies arranged accommodation for their workers (some in hotels, even), one taxi driver has not been as lucky. Asiaone reports that Facebook user Alvin Koh and his colleague had called for a private hire vehi- cle on April 11 when they met a Trans-cab taxi driver. Upon board- ing the taxi, the cabbie began telling them his story - he had been sleeping in the car since the lockdown, alleging that his company had done little to help him. Despite his best efforts to find a place to stay, the cabbie said he had found the options “relatively expensive” and had to resort to sleeping in his taxi. Although the driver is a Singaporean, he lives in Johor Bahru, Koh added. While the reason for this wasn’t mentioned, Koh speculated that the cabbie has a family to feed and hence, made the decision to stay behind and continue working in Singapore. Spending the night in the confines of his vehicle wasn’t the only obstacle the taxi driver faced. In a video Koh shared, the driver talked about how he’d go to casinos to use the shower facilities that are open to the public. He too, like many other taxi drivers, is also afraid of eating inside the taxi. Instead, he’d hide in a quiet spot out of fear that someone would take a photo of him and shame him online for not eating at a proper place. However, as of April 11, the Ministry of Health clarified that taxi drivers are allowed to eat in public spaces or in their vehi- cles if it is not practical for them to return home.
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