Business

Ex-Uber driver takes legal action over ‘racist’ face-recognition software

An Uber driver who lost his job when automated face-scanning software failed to recognise him is accusing the firm of indirect race discrimination in a legal test case.

The black driver, who worked on the Uber platform from 2016 until April 2021, has filed an employment tribunal claim alleging his account was illegally deactivated when facial-verification software used to log drivers on to the ride-hailing app decided he was not who he said he was.

The Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB), which is backing the action, claimed at least 35 other drivers had had their registration with Uber terminated as a result of alleged mistakes with the software since the start of the pandemic. It is calling for Uber to scrap the “racist algorithm” and reinstate terminated drivers.

Uber said it “strongly refutes the completely unfounded claims” and that it was “committed to fighting racism and being a champion for equality – both inside and outside our company”. The firm said the checks were “designed to protect the safety and security of everyone who uses the app by ensuring the correct driver is using their account”. Drivers can choose human verification of their picture, and when technology is chosen “there is always a minimum of two human expert reviews prior to any decision to remove a driver”, she said.

Uber has used the software since April 2020. In 2019 Microsoft, which makes the software, conceded facial recognition software did not work as well for people of colour and could fail to recognise them.

Studies of several facial recognition software packages have shown that error rates when recognising people with darker skin have been higher than among lighter-skinned people, although Microsoft and others have been improving performance. Uber said its software did not rely on scanning large numbers of faces, which had been blamed for introducing error. Rather it verified an already uploaded picture of the driver against their freshly submitted selfie.

In London, nine out of 10 private hire drivers are black or black British, Asian or Asian British, or of mixed race, according to a recent survey by TfL.

“Uber’s continued use of a facial recognition algorithm that is ineffective on people of colour is discriminatory,” said Henry Chango Lopez, general secretary of the IWGB. “Hundreds of drivers and couriers who served through the pandemic have lost their jobs without any due process or evidence of wrongdoing.”

A Nigerian driver who worked on the Uber Eats platform in Manchester until he was locked out in March after several failed attempts using the facial verification software, said his family had faced “serious suffering” as a result.

Abiodun Ogunyemi, a married father of three, said he had run up debts so large he could not afford his son’s bus fare to get to school. He says the photo on Uber’s records did not feature the longer hair or beard he currently has, but he has a distinctive scar over one eye and the rest of his face is visible. “I feel the algorithm is discriminatory to people of colour,” he said. “I know about five black people the same thing has happened to.”

Uber said anyone removed from the platform could appeal against the decision, with an additional human review.

On 10 April the driver in the test case, who asked not be named, tried to log on for work by submitting a photo through the app, but received a message from Uber saying he had failed to verify his identity and he was locked out of the system for 24 hours. He submitted a second photo after that period, which did not work either.

According to his claim, four days later his account was deactivated and he was sent a message stating: “Our team conducted a thorough investigation and the decision to end the partnership has been made on a permanent basis. The matter is not subject to further review.”

His case is also being backed by the Black Lives Matter organisation which said: “The gig economy, which already creates immense precarity for Black key workers, is now further exacerbated by this software.”

Microsoft declined to comment on an ongoing legal case.

Business

NNPC refineries may never work again – Dangote

The President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has stated that Nigeria’s state-owned refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna may never function properly again, despite the reported $18 billion spent on their rehabilitation.

Speaking while hosting members of Global CEO Africa at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Dangote revealed that his decision to construct the 650,000-barrel-per-day facility followed the late President Umar Musa Yar’Adua’s administration’s refusal to sell the refineries to him.

According to Dangote, he and other investors had acquired the refineries in January 2007 but were compelled to return them to government ownership after a change in administration. He observed that despite significant subsequent investment, the refineries have remained inoperative.

“The refineries we bought before, which were owned by Nigeria, were producing about 22 per cent of PMS. We bought them in January 2007 but had to return them due to a change in government. The managing director at that time convinced Yar’Adua that the refineries would work,” he said.

“As of today, they have spent about $18 billion on those refineries, and they are still not working. I doubt very much if they will ever work,” he added.

Dangote likened the rehabilitation efforts to attempting to upgrade a 40-year-old car with modern technology, suggesting that even a new engine would not be compatible with the outdated framework.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo had earlier expressed similar misgivings. In a previous interview, he asserted that the NNPC knew it was incapable of effectively operating the refineries but actively blocked private sector involvement.

Obasanjo disclosed that Dangote and other investors had paid $750 million to acquire the refineries, only for the deal to be reversed by the Yar’Adua administration.

“I told Yar’Adua the refineries would not work. I said, ‘NNPC cannot do it.’ He said, ‘NNPC said they can.’ I told him, ‘When you want to sell them again, you won’t find anyone willing to pay even $200 million as scrap.’ And that is where we are today,” Obasanjo said.

He alleged that the failure to privatise the refineries was fuelled by entrenched corruption within the NNPC, and insisted that those responsible should be held accountable.

Obasanjo further claimed that over $2 billion had been spent on the refineries in recent years, with no tangible results.

“If anyone says the refineries are working, why are they now relying on Aliko Dangote? He will make his refinery work and deliver,” he said.

Business

Nigerian stock market hits historic N1.806trn gains

The Nigerian Stock Exchange, under Nigerian Exchange Group, NGX, Limited, recorded a historic milestone as investors gained N1.806 trillion in a single day.

This development follows a significant rise in the All-Share Index, ASI, which surged by 2,457.13 points, or 2.01 per cent, to close at 124,446.80, crossing the 124,000 mark for the first time, from its previous close of 121,989.67.

The market’s positive performance has been attributed to growing investor confidence in Nigeria’s equities market, bolstered by improved liquidity conditions and ongoing economic reforms.

Market capitalisation similarly rose by 2.35 per cent to settle at N78.726 trillion on Thursday, up from N76.970 trillion recorded on Wednesday.

Consequently, market breadth closed strongly positive, with 70 gainers and only 10 losers.

On the gainers’ table, FTN Cocoa rose by 10 per cent to end the session at N6.82, while UPDC also gained 10 per cent, closing at N4.62 per share.

United Bank for Africa, UBA, soared by 10 per cent to settle at N39.60, while Consolidated Hallmark Holdings similarly rose by 10 per cent to close at N3.30 per share.

Haldane McCall also gained 10 per cent, ending the session at N4.73 per share.

Conversely, Neimeth International Pharmaceutical declined by 9.91 per cent, finishing at N9, while Legend Internet shed 9.88 per cent to settle at N7.21 per share.

Industrial and Medical Gases dropped by 7.36 per cent to close at N34, and Cadbury Nigeria fell by 6.22 per cent, ending the day at N55 per share.

Similarly, Livestock Feeds lost 5.67 per cent, closing at N9.15 per share.

In terms of market activity, 1.3 billion shares valued at N27.73 billion were exchanged across 27,875 transactions.

This compares to 888.70 million shares worth N15.609 billion traded in 24,303 transactions on Wednesday.

Leading the activity chart was Access Corporation, with 174.22 million shares valued at N3.99 billion.

AIICO Insurance followed with 81.96 million shares worth N165 million, while Ja Paul Gold recorded 74.01 million shares traded, valued at N245.2 million.

UBA exchanged 64.51 million shares worth N2.52 billion, and First City Monument Bank traded 63.3 million shares valued at N585.75 million.

Business

NAFDAC uncovers expired chemicals, additives, seals warehouses

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has uncovered a massive illegal operation involving the sale of fake chemicals, expired food flavours, unauthorised fertilisers, and repackaged pharmaceutical raw materials in the Alapere area of Ketu, Lagos.

The agency, in a statement, disclosed that the operation led to the arrest of several suspects and the sealing of three warehouses filled with dangerous substances.

NAFDAC Director of Investigation and Enforcement, Martins Iluyomade, told journalists that the raid followed credible intelligence about a criminal network engaged in large-scale food and chemical counterfeiting.

Iluyomade described the agency’s action as its campaign carried out to protect the health of Nigerians, stressing that individuals posing as legitimate business operators while engaging in activities that seriously endanger public health.

According to him, the offence was the sale and repackaging of expired chemicals, some of which were dangerously redirected for use in food and drug production.

He explained that several controlled substances and high-risk materials, including fertilisers requiring special clearance from the National Security Adviser, were found stocked without any authorisation.