Uber has expressed strong resentment over allegations the Transport Ministry had instructed them to brand all vehicles under their operations as taxis within a month

The news of the alleged directive by the Transport Ministry came to light after General Secretary of the Commercial Taxi Drivers Association Steven Nimo indicated during an interview with TV3 that the Ministry gave the directive after the union had petitioned it

According to him, their petition was based on what the Association believed to be a breach of LI 2180 which the aver demands that all taxi operators brand their vehicles in the accepted taxi colours and display a taxi sign on top of their vehicles.

The General Secretary of the Commercial Taxi Drivers Association claimed the ministry issued the directive after a stakeholder meeting on January 10, 2018, where Uber was present.

Contrary to Steven Nimo's assertions, Francesca Uriri Head of Communications for Uber, West Africa has stated that "no such decision has been made by the Ministry or any of its officials"

She referred to the statement by Lola Kassim, General Manager West Africa, Uber as having summarised and properly captured the conservations at the meeting held with the Transport Ministry.

Below is the statement by Lola Kassim:

“Uber is committed to continually providing the great people of Ghana a safe, reliable and flexible solution to urban transport at the tap of a button. We’re proud to be bringing more choice to Ghana - and providing economic opportunities for riders and driver partners alike.

We attended a stakeholder meeting convened by the Ministry of Transport of Ghana on January 10, 2018, where we further highlighted our commitment in continuing to work with relevant regulatory and government agencies. We also reiterated the fact that our technology is open and non-exclusive and we will continue to offer it to transportation service providers including taxi operators who would like to take advantage of the economic opportunities it can provide. While no conclusions have been reached, we will continue these conversations towards outcomes that benefit all stakeholders in the transportation ecosystem.

We will meet again next month with officials of the Ministry of Transport of Ghana to further update stakeholders on the outcomes of our policy outreach.”