Commercial taxi drivers operating at the local and international terminals of the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos have expressed concern over an alleged directive requiring only vehicles manufactured from 2020 onward to operate within the airport.
The drivers, in a video circulating on social media, claimed the policy would force many of them out of business because they could not afford to replace their vehicles.
One of the drivers alleged that vehicles meeting the purported requirement cost about N18 million, an amount he described as beyond the reach of most airport taxi operators.
According to the drivers, the alleged directive could result in the loss of their means of livelihood at a time of prevailing economic challenges.
They also alleged that the policy was intended to pave the way for the introduction of a separate fleet of taxis to operate at the airports.
“Please help us so our cry can get to President Bola Tinubu. They want to push us out of business. There is no job in Nigeria at the moment,” one of the drivers said in the video.
The drivers appealed to the Federal Government to intervene and review the alleged directive.
As of the time of filing this report, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) had not issued an official statement confirming or denying the existence of such a policy.
Similarly, there was no official response from the airport management regarding the claims made by the taxi operators.
