Nigerian filmmaker Niyi Akinmolayan has sparked a fresh debate over the habit of blaming local industry players whenever a major international company reduces its presence in Nigeria. His latest intervention came as Nigerians reacted to the recent exit of Uber from the country, with the filmmaker drawing a cheeky comparison to the earlier backlash against Nollywood filmmakers following Prime Video’s retreat from commissioning African originals and Netflix’s reduction in its Nigerian investment activity.
Akinmolayan’s question—“Are you going to blame drivers for Uber leaving?”—is less a defence of every decision made in Nollywood than a warning against finding an easy scapegoat whenever a multinational changes its business strategy. Uber officially ended its Nigerian operations on September 2, 2026, after 12 years, while reporting has pointed to rising operating costs, inflation, fuel expenses, competition and broader business considerations surrounding the ride-hailing market.
From Streaming Platforms to Ride-Hailing Apps, Who Gets the Blame?
The filmmaker’s analogy lands at an interesting moment for Nollywood. Amazon Prime Video announced in 2024 that it was scaling back its African operations and would stop commissioning originals in Africa and the Middle East, a decision that generated considerable concern within Nigeria’s film industry. Netflix, meanwhile, reduced its activity and investment pace in Nigeria, although the company clarified that it was not exiting the Nigerian market and would continue investing in Nigerian stories.
That history makes Akinmolayan’s latest argument particularly pointed. When the streaming money became smaller, some public discussions quickly turned toward Nigerian filmmakers as if they had personally walked into the boardrooms of multinational corporations and switched off the investment taps. Now that Uber has driven out of Nigeria, his question effectively asks Nigerians to apply the same logic elsewhere: if a driver is not automatically responsible for Uber’s corporate decision, why should filmmakers automatically be blamed whenever a streaming giant changes its strategy?
Uber’s Exit Gives the Analogy a New Engine
Uber’s departure provides a rather convenient real-life example for Akinmolayan’s argument. The company entered Nigeria in 2014 and operated for 12 years before announcing its withdrawal. Reuters reported that Uber did not specify the exact reasons for leaving, while noting that Nigeria’s ride-hailing market had become increasingly difficult, with inflation, higher fuel costs, currency volatility and intense competition adding pressure.
There is also plenty of evidence that the ride-hailing industry itself has been wrestling with structural problems. Drivers have protested over fares and commissions, while industry stakeholders have raised concerns about operating costs and the sustainability of the business. Uber’s exit is therefore not simply a story about drivers failing to drive properly; it is a corporate decision occurring within a complicated economic environment. Akinmolayan’s satire essentially suggests that if Nigerians would not blame the person behind the steering wheel for Uber’s boardroom calculations, perhaps they should think twice before putting every Nollywood problem on the filmmaker’s head.
For now, Akinmolayan’s comparison has added another layer to Nigeria’s increasingly familiar debate about foreign investment, local industries and who should carry the blame when multinational companies change direction. Whether Nigerians agree with him or not, the question is unlikely to disappear quietly—and OGM News NG will continue watching the reactions and developments
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