By Phil Okose Onitsha
Business activities were on Wednesday paralysed in Onitsha, the commercial capital of Anambra State as bus drivers plying along ’33’/Onitsha/Omeife Nkwelle/Otuocha road who operate under the aegis of Urban Drivers’ Welfare Association, UDWA, took to the major streets to protest against the chairman of the unit, Mr. Chukwujekwu Oligbo, accusing him of imposing all manners of unauthorized levies, high handedness, mismanagement of funds, impunity among others even as they urged the Anambra state Commissioner of Transport Dr. Christian Madubuko to intervene.
But in a swift reaction, Mr. Oligbo, dismissed the allegations as mere blackmail noting that the protesters are being sponsored by a rival transport organization, Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) that is desperately scheming to take over the job of their union (UDWAS) in the state but was rejected by the state government adding that he neither used thugs or imposed illegal levies on members just as he maintained that he only insisted that the approval rate of the sum of Ñ900 being collected from each vehicle per day as loading fee before the lockdown be strictly abided to instead of Ñ1,150.00 being alleged by the protesters.
Speaking to newsmen while displaying placards some of which have the inscriptions that read, “no more Jekwu”, “no more UDWAS”. They are thieves”, “we will not pay such money again, drivers in Anambra State are dying in the hands of the so called UDWAS among others in Omeife Nkwelle.
Mr. Friday Obogu, Brother Paul Aluma and Aniukwu Kenneth, spokesmen of the protesters told newsmen that they were protesting against the impunity of the chairman who in a bid to force them to pay all manners of levies he frequently imposes on them, arrested seven of their members, detained them in the police cell and after their release still went ahead to invite thugs to beat them up in order to force them to pay.
They further noted that the chairman has been forcing them to pay all manners of levies like paying the sum of N70,000 for the registration of new vehicle, chala chala levies which is N200 everyday from each bus as well as others.
According to them, “the chairman has been ruling us with iron hand, nobody opposes him as he uses miscreants to always achieve this,
We are calling on the state commissioner of transport Dr. Christian Madubuko to intervene and call him to order, you see before covid -19 pandemic the approved levy for each vehicle loaded was N1,150.00 for a bus of 14 passengers at a passenger fare of N150.00 but because of social distance we reduced our
passengers to seven and collect N200 as fare for each bus to realize N1,400.00,
We collectively agreed that we will be paying the sum of N600 for each bus per day after loading but out of greed the chairman insisted we should still be paying the sum of N1,150.00 and that is why we are saying no”.
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