THE National President, Professional E-Hailing Drivers and Private Owners Association of Nigeria (PEDPAN), Comrade Idris Sonuga has warned unregistered members of the association to distance self from impersonation and desist from disseminating false information against the union to the public.
He disclosed this in Lagos, at a press briefing on welfare, ethics, rules and regulations of the association in the state.
The president urged members to be focused and obey ethics and conduct of E-Hailing profession in attaining it’s goals adding that anyone found indulging in any act contrary to the rules of the association would be prosecuted according to the law.
He said, “We received with greatest shock a news story published by International Center for Investigative Reporting(ICIR) about one Joseph Olawale who claimed to be a Public Relations Officer (PRO) for PEDPAN and an unverifiable Union with the acronym called “NUPADW”.
“Joseph Olawale is no longer a member of PEDPA,,” he said.
According to the National president, Olawale was disciplined a year ago, by the Union’s Disciplinary Committee for a gross misconduct which led to his being relieved of all his responsibilities after which he was excommunicated.
According to the National President, PEDPAN is a registered Union with the Coperate Affairs Commission (CAC) and dully affiliated with the Trade Union Congress (TUC), currently at the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment to be registered as a trade union.
He added that PEDPA is an organised union with administrative structures in different local governments in over 20 states of the federation.
“Our members are well profiled and they hold weekly meetings in their various Local government branches of PEDPA establishment to discuss collective challenges and proffer solution.
“PEDPAN held State council meetings and National council meetings and the said Joseph Olawale has never been identified in all these meetings as an executive members let alone being a PRO of the Union.
How can such personality be speaking on behalf of the union that he knows nothing about.
“If ICIR is indeed an investigative reporting media outfit, we expected her to get facts and verify his claim before publishing,” he said.
The national president said NUPADW is not representing the interest of the E-Hailing drivers in anyway and PEDPAN cannot stoop so low to an ineffective union to discuss about the rights of over 100,000 E-Hailing Drivers in Nigeria.
“PEDPA have over 55,000 E-Hailing Drivers registered with PEDPA administrative portal and we discussed with our members before we speak for them.
However, In view of the forgoing, We hereby disclaim this news, because it is unfounded, defamatory, unprofessional and being built up by some unscrupulous element.
We demand for the news to be pulled down immediately without further delay and an unreserved apology tendered to PEDPA for this error by ICRI and NUPADW.
The National president warns that the union will not hesitate to sue those behind such a defamatory and unprofessional story.
