The Amalgamated Union of App-based Transporters of Nigeria (AUATON) has rejected claims that it signed a 30-year, ₦5 billion agreement with local ride-hailing app SimpliRide to make the platform the preferred choice for Nigerian drivers. The denial was contained in a statement signed by the union's National Media and Publicity Chairman, Comrade Jossy Adaraniwon.

The union characterised the accusations as a coordinated campaign of misinformation, fabrications, malicious falsehoods being peddled by two disgruntled members.

The clash ultimately turns on contract language—minimum terms, exit penalties, and board appointments—the kind of wording that shapes how much say Nigerian e-hailing drivers actually have over the platforms they work with.

“We categorically deny the fabricated claim that the future of the e-hailing industry has been “sold” or “mortgaged” to SimpliRide for 30 years at a price of billion Naira. This is a deliberate distortion of a standard protection clause,” the AUATON statement reads.

According to the union, those behind the allegation distorted the Termination Clause of the Joint Venture Agreement signed with the local e-hailing platform. Under the clause, the agreement shall remain in full force and effect for a minimum period of three hundred and sixty months (360 months). It further provides that if either party ends the agreement before expiration without a court declaration, that party must pay a penalty of ₦5 billion.

“Should either Party attempt to terminate this Agreement unilaterally or without cause deemed valid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the terminating Party shall be liable to pay a penalty of 5 billion Naira to the non-terminating Party. This penalty is intended as a deterrent to early termination and to uphold the mutual commitment to the Agreement's terms,” the clause states.

The union stressed that the ₦5 billion figure is not a sale price but a strict penalty designed to protect the union and drivers by preventing the ride-hailing company from abruptly withdrawing or dismantling driver welfare structures it has committed to.

“It guarantees long-term stability and safeguards—rather than mortgages—the future of our drivers,” the union said.

The distinction is practical rather than semantic: a penalty for early exit binds both sides to long-term welfare commitments, whereas a sale would transfer value outright.

AUATON denies SimpliRide board seats for its officials

AUATON also dismissed allegations that three members of its Central Working Committee (CWC) sit on the Board of Directors of SimpliRide. The union noted that as a completely independent trade union, it is not entitled to a director's seat at the company's parent company, Epevs Studio Nigeria Limited, which is itself an independent registered company.

Instead, the three seats in question are on the e-hailing company's Corporate Advisory Board, which gives drivers a direct voice in all policy decisions.

“The Corporate Advisory Board consists of a 10-member framework. For active strategic operations, it comprises seven (7) members: four (4) representatives from Epevs Studio Nigeria Limited and three (3) representatives appointed directly by AUATON,” the union said.

This structure, it explained, ensures that drivers—through their chosen union representatives—retain collective decision-making power over the platform's policies, direction, and pricing metrics.

The gap between a board of directors, which holds formal corporate control, and an advisory board, which channels driver input into policy, is precisely where influence in such union-platform partnerships is decided.

The union challenged those spreading the rumours to provide concrete evidence for their claims to the public, saying they are acting out of personal grievances after their attempts to exploit union resources were blocked.

AUATON added that SimpliRide was introduced to revolutionise the industry and prioritise driver welfare. In the interest of complete transparency, it said, the Joint Venture Agreement is openly accessible directly within the ride-hailing app and is available upon request to any financial member of the union.

Because the agreement can, by the union's account, be read inside the app or requested by any financial member, the terms behind both sets of claims are open to direct verification—making the document itself the obvious reference point for settling the dispute.

“We urge all app-based drivers across Nigeria to completely disregard this anti-welfare campaign. This sabotage is a desperate attempt to discourage you from embracing an ecosystem that frees you from the current exploitative multinational apps,” AUATON said.