Ride-hailing services facing security conundrum

ISLAMABAD, March 18 (APP): The ride-hailing services’ drivers are perturbed over what they say the ‘targeted killing’ of their colleagues in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi, while Capital Police reject the notion that there are specific motives to this effect.
The murders of Careem’s captains in suspicious circumstances within a short span of time, have forced them to demand security for which they had recently held a demonstration in front of the National Press Club.
Talking to APP, Superintendent of Police (SP) Investigation Islamabad Zubair Sheikh said police were investigating from all angles and as yet they could not find any clue that the killing of Careem’s captain was targeted one. It appeared to be a vehicle snatching incident.
The department, he said, had delivered the lectures to the captains of Uber company last month as well as held meetings with Careem’s drivers and sensitized them over security issues and safety measures. They were advised not to pick the rides from and to the far-flung areas especially late night.
He said the captains were also requested to quickly inform the police if they noticed any suspicious activity in the area of their movement to avert any untoward incident.“Our department is working closely with ride-hailing services to avoid any troublesome in future,” the SP added.
Careem’s Chief Executive Mudassar Sheikh, expressing sorrow over the captains’ murder, said during 20 days, they had laid to rest their two brothers.
“A sense of insecurity prevails among our staff. We just want protection to earn livelihood for our families in a secure and peaceful environment,” he said.
A captain Shaukat Ahmed said the companies were providing a self-employment platform to the unemployed persons but such criminal acts had created fear among their families and they were being advised to quit the job.
Another captain Ehsaan said despite the situation arisen out of the killings, they were determined to work, hoping for a better and secure working environment in future.
Public Relations Officer of Careem, Sibtain Naqvi, said, “His company is in close contact with law enforcement agencies and other relevant authorities to ensure that our workers are provided with complete protection.”
He said they had accepted a few demands of their captains while the rest were under consideration.
He demanded installation of more close-circuit television cameras and lights on the roads to ensure secure mobility of their drivers at night.