TEMIDAYO AKINSUYI

When the Lagos State Government under the leadership of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu last week announced the ban on the activities of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in some parts of the state, many Lagosians sneered, describing the ban as ‘audio’, which is the local parlance for something that is not real or merely existing by name. Others said it is a political statement and a normal rhetoric they have been accustomed to by the state government.

Indeed, those who believed the governor’s directive carries no weight are justified because this is not the first time the Lagos State Government will place a ban on the activities of NURTW in the state. On several occasions, the order is not enforced and members of the union still operate in broad daylight with connivance of security agencies and government officials who benefit from their nefarious and criminal activities.

Members of the union had unrestrained freedom during the tenure of former Lagos state governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu whom they still hold in high esteem till today. They operated with impunity and it is not surprising hearing many of them say that the Tinubu era between 1999 to 2007 was the best period for them.

In August 2012, the Lagos State Government under Governor Babatunde Fashola banned activities of NURTW across the various motor parks in the state. As part of moves to strengthen the Road Traffic Law then, the government also proposed that commercial bus drivers and conductors will soon begin to wear uniform and badges.

The then Commissioner for Transportation, Kayode Opeifa, while briefing the media said that the development also prohibits members of the NURTW from collecting money on the roads from commuters.

“The government recognises the right for NURTW members to associate. But it believes that the motor parks should be made easy for those who want to carry out their business of commuting in the state to do so without interference.

“Henceforth, union activity is no longer allowed in all the garages in the state. What they need to do now is to operate the way other unions in the state operate by using a recognised office.”

“No union member should be seen on the roads collecting money from transport operators. It is illegal and this is how it is contained in the white paper adopted by the state government”.

The NURTW leaders who had earlier endorsed the governor for re-election in 2011 kicked against the move. They described the order proscribing their activities as a ‘political hara-kiri’ for the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), saying if Fashola thinks he can behave anyhow because he won’t be needing a third term, they will wait for the candidate the party which later became APC would present in 2015. Tried as he may, Fashola’s reforms of NURTW activities in Lagos state never saw the light of the day till he vacated office in May 2015.

In June 2017, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode also announced a ban on NURTW activities in Oshodi and its environs, over the killing of Alhaji Rasaq Bello, a leader of the Motorcyclists Operators Association of Lagos State (MOALS), an affiliate of the NURTW at Shogunle area of Oshodi. Even without lifting the ban, members of the union who thrive on daily collection of fees from transport workers continued their activities while the state government looked the other way.

In January 2018, following days of unrests that led to killings and destructions, Ambode again ordered the immediate suspension of all NURTW activities in Lagos Island indefinitely.

The then Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal, who announced this after a Security Council Meeting held at the Lagos House, Alausa and chaired by Ambode stated that the decision was to curb any further breakdown of law and order and restore peace in the area.

He said: “In view of the crisis rocking the NURTW chapter of the Lagos Island and the insecurity it is creating on the Island, the Security Council Meeting today chaired by the State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode has ordered that union activities be suspended on the Island until further notice.

“We are also using the opportunity to call on NURTW leadership in the State that nobody or group of persons, organisations would be allowed to tamper with the peaceful security situation in Lagos State and that the Government would not hesitate to proscribe completely all union activities in the State if their members do not obey the laws of the land and ensure that their activities do not amount to breaching the peace”.

It is no gainsaying that the union members who are mostly footsoldiers of the APC moved ferociously against a second term for Ambode in 2019. The governor who had ruffled many feathers with some of his policies lost out in the power equation.

In the latest development, Governor Sanwo-Olu’s order banning the union activities came after two persons were killed last week when rival gangsters of the NURTW clashed in the Idumota area of Lagos State. The fight which was between hoodlums from Idumota, Balogun, Martins, Kosoko and Oluwole areas of Lagos Island affected trading and other commercial activities in the area for days.

The state government later claimed that it had arrested two leaders of the union, Kunle Lawal popularly known as Kunle Poly and Mustapha Adekunle popularly known as Sego.

The state security outfit, Rapid Response Squad (RRS) on its verified Facebook page said it “arrested the two principal suspects in the constant clashes in Idumota and its environs which has intermittently crippled commercial activities in the area. The arrest was effected today at a meeting where the two NURTW members along with some other stakeholders converged.”

However, Sego later made a clarification that he was never arrested but only honoured a police invitation at the Zonal headquarters of the Zone 2 police formation in Onikan.

On his part, Kunle Poly who was believed to have fallen out with the state chairman of the NURTW, Alhaji Musiliu Akinsanya popularly called MC Oluomo was ordered to be remanded alongside two others, Prince Idowu Johnson and Agboola Kosoko, in the custody of the Nigeria Police Zonal Monitoring Unit, Zone 2, Onikan, for 30 days by Magistrate Linda Balogun of the Lagos State Magistrates’ Court, Yaba.

While it remains to be seen if ban by Governor Sanwo-Olu on the activities of the union will achieve any meaningful result, those living in the areas have claimed that the members are still in operation, even though disguising by wearing mufti in place of their green and white uniform.

Some concerned Lagosians also claimed that the governor’s order may not carry any weight given the fact that the election is around the corner and he desires the endorsement of the union leaders to get a second term in office.

In his reaction, Chief Olabode George, a former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) laid the blame of the perennial clashes by the NURTW members on the doorsteps of Governor Sanwo-Olu.

Speaking in an interview with Daily Independent, George who was born in Lagos Island said many youths have taken to thuggery and are joining the NURTW because of lack jobs and failure of the state government to create skill acquisition programmes for them.

He said “Lagos Island is where I was born and I also grew up there. The difference between my time and now is like day and night. What has the government of Lagos done to assuage the pains of these young people?”.

“ There was a programme under former President Goodluck Jonathan that they call skill acquisition programme. It was specifically targeted at and designed for youths”.

“Whatever skills you want to learn, maybe tailoring, hairdressing, carpentry, shoemaking and so on, the government will advertise, people apply and the government trained them at the Federal Institute of Industrial Research (FIIRO), Oshodi. After they have successfully completed the training, the government now hook them into cooperatives and give them interest-free loans”.

“With all the resources at the disposal of the Lagos state government, what are they doing in that direction? Like the Europeans will say ‘a man who has no job is a ready tool for thuggery’. We also have a popular saying here that ‘an idle hand is a devil’s workshop’. When the youths wake up in the morning with no job, they are in a state of helplessness and hopelessness. Yet, somebody is getting N30 billion every month”.

“My advice to the Lagos state government is, go and create jobs for these young people. Even graduates are now staying at home in Lagos Island with no job. It is unemployment that is driving these youths into becoming members of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW)”.

“I grew up in Lagos Island and it was the envy of everybody in West Africa. But today, it has become an eyesore where thugs are having a field day. Yet, the government is not concerned, they keep breeding thugs because they have no plans for the youths”.

Speaking further, the Atona Oodua of the Source said unlike Governor Babatunde Fashola who developed his area in Surulere and his successor, Akinwunmi Ambode who transformed Epe, Sanwo-Olu has completely abandoned Lagos Island where he hails from and the place is now a squalour.

Also reacting to the development, MC Oluomo, the state chairman of NURTW described the action of the state government as a welcome development in resolving the crisis.

“We need to allow the police to do their job without intervening in it. Their investigation would unravel the truth behind the intermittent clashes and bring it to an end,” he said

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https://independent.ng/nurtw-ban-can-sanwo-olu-walk-the-talk/

It's obvious that the ban won't take effect. Those miscreants are very beneficial to the game plan of the political class in rigging elections. The government only made the statement in order to avoid criticism from the public. The power the govt over the years has given NURTW is huge...infact it's current leader in Lagos is even aspiring to be an Oba

If government has the political will and partners with the drivers it can be stopped or an official amount can be fixed.

Instead of these illegal extortion.
Owo balle
Owo security
Owo chairman girlfriend
Owo weekend. Government try and find a way to collect your revenue and stop using touts

He can't. Tinubu respects MC Oluomo more than Sanwolu. If u know how much nurtw generates everyday in Lagos, you go fear

If I hear.....Ko le work! The world renowned bullion van master will not allow that to happen.
NURTW are Tinubu's foot soldiers used in rigging and snatching of ballot boxes during election.
Besides that, Baba Sope has some percentage he gets from all the "Owo mi da 's" every month in Lagos.

true. someone said he deliberately put mcoluomo there to generate money for 2023 presidential election. sanwoolu can't do jack

ThEGodFaThEr120:
If I hear.....Ko le work! The world renowned bullion van master will not allow that to happen.
NURTW are Tinubu's foot soldiers used in rigging and snatching of ballot boxes during election.
Besides that, Baba Sope has some percentage he gets from all the "Owo mi da 's" every month in Lagos.

What is the use of the NURTW if not creating nuisances in Lagos roads.

hisexcellency34:
He can't. Tinubu respects MC Oluomo more than Sanwolu. If u know how much nurtw generates everyday in Lagos, you go fear

How you people dey reason sometimes dey baffle person

wetin u sabi?

helinues:


How you people dey reason sometimes dey baffle person

Peter Obi didn't ban onitsha agbero
Obiano didn't ban onitsha agbero
Soludo is bussy with akwette cloth

Leave Yoruba alone

Ban what wen Election is about to start....


Which machinery dem go use...

Our brothers from the East are not awake yet! We await their usual wailing

He won't survive it.....

The NURTW is Tinubu's tool.... and Sanwo will never dare his master....

hisexcellency34:
wetin u sabi?

An outsider asking me what do I sabi about Lagos state?

Some of you people too dey take your jokes too far

Eish

After reading all these epistle of banning and rebanning and overbanning from regime to regime and based on say Sanwo Olu na water leaf before... It's evident this cannot be upheld!

Good morning my people.

Oyo State NURTW are very rugged yet a first timer and gentle guy like Seyi Makinde proscribed them easily

It's like people keep forgetting the kind of power Governors hold

Lolz

Chai.

you forget the fact that makinde has no godfather

Jerryherd:
Oyo State NURTW are very rugged yet a first timer and gentle guy like Seyi Makinde proscribed them easily

It's like people keep forgetting the kind of power Governors hold

Terorislam:
Yoruba Muslims majors more in agbro, skull mining and human parts distribution, the will sulfa if the ban holds

Mkpuru Mniri people sef... Early morning he is looking for who to insult them, like insult and shame is their second food after flesh eating

Jerryherd:
Oyo State NURTW are very rugged yet a first timer and gentle guy like Seyi Makinde proscribed them easily

It's like people keep forgetting the kind of power Governors hold

Are you minding those people. Before Lagos can't ban NURTW, now they have banned them, na another dummy question they are still asking..

I don't know why it's too hard for them to relocate back to their region instead of blaming any policies from SW governors

hisexcellency34:
you forget the fact that makinde has no godfather

Auxiliary is more than a Godfather to him,

helinues:


Are you minding those people. Before Lagos can't ban NURTW, now they have banned them, na another dummy question they are still asking..

I don't know why it's too hard for them to relocate back to their region instead of blaming any policies from SW governors

Must you always talk so unintelligently? You are always poke nosing into other regions affairs now they poke nose into yours you are asking them to go back to their region? You see how backward your mentality seems?

Grow up .. you talk too much

Belial06:


Must you always talk so unintelligently? You are always poke nosing into other regions affairs now they poke nose into yours you are asking them to go back to their region? You see how backward your mentality seems?

Grow up .. you talk too much

hisexcellency34:

yes ooo. Na him go taya. He keeps abusing igbos to relocate to their region and he says he is not a tribalist. Amadioha kee you there helinues

hisexcellency34:
helinues is a confirmed first class bigot and tribalist

Mynd44
Lalasticlacla
Oamj4
Seun
Mukina
Dominique

rule 2

2. Don't abuse, bully, deliberately insult/provoke, fight, or wish harm to Nairaland members OR THEIR TRIBES

helinues:


Are you minding those people. Before Lagos can't ban NURTW, now they have banned them, na another dummy question they are still asking..

I don't know why it's too hard for them to relocate back to their region instead of blaming any policies from SW governors

They don't understand what Progressive policy, Progressive Governance, of a Progressive party is, we in the South West have always been Progressive since the days of Awolowo

But this miscreants from mkpuru Mniri region are retrogressive and backward in Governance and policies

mumu talk. auxiliary k^o, temporaily nii

Jerryherd:


Auxiliary is more than a Godfather to him,

helinues is a confirmed first class bigot and tribalist

Belial06:


Must you always talk so unintelligently? You are always poke nosing into other regions affairs now they poke nose into yours you are asking them to go back to their region? You see how backward your mentality seems?

Grow up .. you talk too much