Tricycle operators, under the aegis of Anambra Keke Drivers Forum (AKDF) on Wednesday protested against alleged extortion by touts in collaboration with some persons suspected to be government officials.
The protesters in hundreds moved from Ekwueme Junction on the Enugu-Onitsha expressway and terminated at the Anambra State House of Assembly where they presented their grievance to the lawmakers.
One of the protesters, Mr Ifeanyi Okafor, said some government officials in collaboration with touts were still extorting money from them even after Gov. Chukwuma Soludo banned the payment of levies and taxes to private individuals.
Okafor recalled that when Soludo assumed office, he stopped all activities of touts and unions but noted that menace had become worse.
According to him, the governor said we should pay the sum of N15,000 and more payment after that, he graciously reduced the money to N8,000 due to the economic challenges with the assurance that we will not pay anything again.
“Unfortunately, that is not the case because those whom the state government gave the job to do werecompromising the system.
“Touting is still ongoing, some of our members pay as much as N1,500 in Awka while places like Onitsha, they pay about N3,000 to these touts, and we discover that they are working in collaboration with some government officials to extort money from us.
“They come in different forms, today, it is emblem, tomorrow it is renewal of driving license, next time it is drivers’ welfare and security profiling at the cost of N2,500 too. All these levies have been banned by Soludo,” he said.
Another protester, Mr Collins Ude said that tricycle drivers were not against the government but against the government officials collaborating with touts to extort money from them.
He said data of tricycle operators in Anambra had been captured by the Anambra Internal Revenue Service where they remitted their levies weekly or monthly as agreed with the state government.
“We are not against anybody enforcing the collection but what we are saying is that the governor has given us the way to pay taxes and we are complying.
“We are not owing the government and we make sure that every driver pays as and when due.
“We cannot accept the old touts continuing to extort money from us with the help of government appointees,
Addressing the protesters, Mr Ikenna Ofodeme, Majority Leader of the Anambra at the State House of Assembly
Ofodeme commended them for their peaceful conduct and the mature way they presented their case.
He said that the Speaker of the Assembly was aware of their presence and assured them that the issues raised would be investigated.
“The complaints you made today are well noted and we will look into them critically for the good of Anambra people,” he said.
SP Emeka Obi, the Divisional Police Officer DPO incharge of ‘B’ Awka, and his men were on ground to ensure there was no breakdown of law and order.
