A South African national who ignited the Bolt war between his country and Nigeria on social media weeks ago has appealed for a ceasefire in the now out-of-control conflagration.
Grand Dilan, a social media influence had triggered the ‘war’ by randomly using the ride-hailing app to trick Nigerian riders into going to locations and then cancelling the ride.
This infuriated his Nigerian counterpart who went ballistic in their retaliation causing a surge, rising Bolt prices and eventually crashing the app in South Africa.
the Nigerians targeted major cities in the country like Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and Sandton, among others.
Social media users in the world’s most populated black nation took the war further by ordering items online and dumping them in the homes of residents who did not want them.
Dilan has now literarily gone on his knees on TikTok that the war has gone too far.
He also apologised to the business owners and drivers who were affected by the senseless prank.
He stated, “Nigerians, I’m on my knees. I’m begging you people to stop this. You guys have skyrocketed to another level,” he said.
“You guys have damaged a lot of businesses back in South Africa. So many businesses have closed apps. This is getting out of hand. You are destroying people’s businesses. You have destroyed millions.”
NDN n findings revealed that the Bolt War is the peak of ongoing internet and physical rivalries between Nigerians and South Africans.
The ‘war’ had intensified with the defeat of Bafana Bafana, S’Africa’s national football team, by the Super Eagles of Nigeria in the last African Cup of Nations tournament earlier in the year..
The ‘enmity’ reached a fever pitch when a South African with Nigerian ties Ms Chidimma Adeshina was forced to withdraw from the ‘Miss South Africa 2024’ following an intense campaign of calumny targetting her Nigerian route.
