Motorists plying the Lagos/Benin bypass road has cried out to the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki to warn miscreants embarrassing and extorting private car owners conveying their personal goods from other parts of nation to states in the Niger-Delta area, but often extorted and embarrassed at different spots in the name of Uhunwhode Local Government stickers.
A private car owner, Mr. Edward Perezoukomo who was harassed and same time extorted, blamed the Edo State Government for the gross impunity exhibited by this miscreants on a federal road without being challenged.
Narrating his ordeal, he said he was coming from Ogun State with his own private vehicle when some touts blocked his vehicle because he was carrying his own households in his car.
He said one of them that is fat claimed to be cousin of the governor, and that he work for the Uhunwhode Local Government and was compelling me to come and buy a sticker for Fourth Five Thousand Naira (N45,000).
In his words; “I have a farm somewhere in the West, often time I go there to bring my goods to Delta and Bayelsa States, but often time these idiots will jump on the road, park the vehicle and ask of stupid and useless stickers as if I am a commercial driver.”
Can’t I use my vehicle to convey my own goods? Where is it written that I cannot use my own vehicle to travel through Nigerian roads? Am not a Nigerian? Why recruiting touts to harassed federal road users; he queried.
He called on the state governor and the particular local government chairman to withdraw those thieves from the road, else, there will be a show down. He accused them of forceful extortion whereas they do not contribute a dime to the repair of the federal road.
“Is Governor Obaseki fixing the bypass road? Is the local government fixing any part of the road? It is bad for you to be harassing people traveling on their own.”