Bolt Restricts SA and Nigeria Inter Country Ride Requests After Volatile Tussle
- E-hailing company Bolt has restricted cross-country ride requests between South Africa and Nigeria
- The sanction comes after e-hailing users in the two countries started a ruse of requesting fictitious rides
- The gimmick involved requesting rides and cancelling once the driver arrived at the set destination
- Bolt has since told Briefly News that it has since barred responsible individuals from its platform
Source: Getty Images
JOHANNESBURG — The online mud-slinging-cum-elaborate-prank between South Africa and Nigeria has drawn a decisive response from Bolt.
The e-hailing company halted requests between the two countries on Thursday, 22 August, following an explosive trend.
Bolt restricts inter-country ride requests
Briefly News reported earlier that SA e-hailing users began an elaborate cross-country Bolt ruse, carrying distressing emotional and financial implications for unsuspecting drivers.
Numerous posts and video material on X illustrated the extent of the ping-pong affair amid escalating tensions.
The tugging seems to all extend from the drama surrounding former Miss South Africa (SA) 2024 finalist Chidimma Onwe Adetshina.
A few days after she withdrew from the competition following a court order that prevented her continued participation, online hate-spewing between X users from the two countries broke out, further motivated by the revocation of SA's invitation to the Puebla International Literature Festival 2024.
Tensions escalated even further after Adetshina accepted an invitation to participate in the Miss Universe Nigeria beauty pageant.
Things finally came to a head with a volatile cross-country Bolt ride exchange.
In response, Bolt told Briefly News it was aware of the fake ride requests and had since taken steps to address the situation.
"We immediately implemented measures to resolve the matter [by] restricting inter-country ride requests. Those responsible have been blocked from the Bolt application. We prioritise the safety and integrity of our platform and are committed to supporting our driver-partners," Bolt told Briefly News.
Nigerians blame Drake for Israel Adesanya loss
In related news, Briefly News reported that Nigerian mixed martial artist Israel Adesanya fell short in his bid to regain the UFC middleweight title on Sunday.
The grudge match, in which he lost to SA fighter Dricus Du Plessis, was decided in Australia as the latter successfully defended his title.
Social media erupted as Nigerian fans continued to blame Canadian rapper/ singer Drake for Izzy's loss.
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Source: Briefly News
