₦airaland Forum

They don’t build roads. They don’t repair roads. They don’t clean roads. They do not buy vehicles for commercial vehicle operators. They do not stand as guarantors for drivers and riders when they need loans from lenders to purchase their vehicles.

Yet, the Agberos in Lagos - under the guise of the NURTW, MOALS, etc. - generate mind-boggling income for themselves from the illegal levies they extort from commercial vehicle operators.

What is more unfortunate is that they carry out their illegal activities on roads and infrastructure built and maintained by the state government.

Indeed, the agberos are a second government in Lagos.

They act with impunity and most times get away with their atrocities. They parade their goons at every bus stops and forcefully collect bizarre levies from helpless commercial bus drivers, tricycles and motorcycles riders, etc.

Refusal by drivers and riders to pay these illegal levies can lead to the dismantling of some essential parts of their vehicles such as the wipers, side mirrors, fuel tank covers, engine covers, the rubber window seals, etc.

They even beat up drivers and riders, many of whom are hardworking family men toiling to fend for their families in a very economically hostile society. Some of them even die from the assault on them by the agberos. Yet, this method of operations go unquestioned and unregulated.

This simply shows the depth of authority exercised by an illegitimate set of hoodlums in a supposed developed Lagos.

https://i63.tinypic.com/2zs68g5.jpg

Every day, this fantastic mix of transport union and street gang extort from each commercial vehicle operators overwhelming amounts.

On some routes, agberos collect as much as N4, 500 in several trances from a single bus driver. Mind you, this is in a state that boasts of tens of thousands of commercial vehicle operators.

They charge all sort of levies: "owo booking (booking fee), owo chairman (chairman’s money), owo ero (passengers fee), owo olopa (police fee), owo Lastma (Lastma fee)", ‘owo weekend” ‘owo task force, ‘owo organizing,’ ‘owo traffic,’ ‘owo environmental’, the list is endless.

All these also clearly demonstrate the complicity of the different authorities in this illegal enterprise.

Perhaps, this explains why the drivers and riders never protest against this oppressive regime. They understand quite well that every authority – the police, LASTMA, state and Local Government – are all in on this. They also understand that there are underlying connivance of politicians in this grand extortionist cartel.

Interestingly, a school of thought believes that Agberos in Lagos generate more monies than the monthly IGR of some states.

So, where does all these monies go?

Exactly how much of the monies that they collect contributes to the internally generated revenue of the Lagos state?

https://i64.tinypic.com/2illkc6.jpg

Why has successive governments in Lagos state ignored a system that generates jaw-dropping fortune on the roads that they did not build and that they do not maintain?

Granted, this menace is not limited to Lagos state alone. However, Lagos state provides a disgraceful model for this practice.

What is even more unfortunate is that Lagos state is striving hard for the status of a mega city. Which serious city in the world showcases such an aberration on its streets?

https://i64.tinypic.com/1zyykbd.jpg

On record, the only period that Lagosians enjoyed some respite from the menace of the Agberos was during the regime of Col. Buba Marwa. His “Operation Sweep” - a joint police and military intervention - ensured that Lagos state enjoyed temporal salvation from the terror unleashed by these hoodlums.

Tragically, the return of democracy in 1999 resurrected and gave impetus to this regime of terror activity. Successive administrations appeared to defend their interests.

In fairness, the administration of ex-Governor Fashola made a feeble attempt to confront this illegality.

On August 3, 2012, the Fashola administration enacted the Lagos road traffic laws. This law outrightly banned the activities of the Agberos both at motor parks and at bus stops. Curiously, the enforcement of that law by the chest-beating administration only lasted for 3 days.

Interestingly, that law still exists. Yet, there has been no political will to enforce it.

Also worthy of note is that, 50% of the violent activities in Lagos is because of the activities of the agberos. Their frequent clashes with rival groups constitute about 50% of the spate of insecurities experience in the state.

So, is the covenant politicians have with the agberos more important to them than the social welfare of the provision of welfare and security for the citizens?

In conclusion, it is quite curious that Lagos state - a state that is so desperate to further increase its IGR - has not looked in the direction of taking over the duty of “taxing” commercial vehicle operators from the agberos.

Perhaps, if they look in that direction and introduce a more civilize method of collecting levies from drivers and riders; it will come with not a few benefits.

For instance, there will be less traffic gridlocks, less arbitrary hike in fares, sanity at bus stops, saner driving by commercial drivers, and of course, more IGR for the state.

Itesiwaju Ipinle Eko lo je wa l'ogun


https://i67.tinypic.com/2mgmpfo.jpg

Source:

https://autojosh.com/are-the-agberos-above-the-law-in-lagos/

Lalasticlala
Mynd44
Ishilove
Marpol
Semid4lyfe
Obinoscopy
Seun

ok

ok

Op na ex_agbero

AutoJoshNG, they are coming for you.
@the post.
Yorubas always leave their problem and carry IPOB matter on their head like gala.
In my State, if you try this rubbish the youths will deal with you.
Lzaa, imhotep

Tinubu boys

Touch them if u wan see trouble

I just dey pity the conductors sef....Agberos will harass them, The driver of the bus will be sitting inside without muttering a word

Is the chief Agbero not the political leader of the south west? All the other small ones are his boys and so long as he continues to be the political leader in the south west, they will be around constituting nuisance to society

At major bus stops you have up to 8 agberos each collecting N50 from the driver.

This repeats itself in the evening.

They make returns appropriately.

They are mostly not Lagos indigenes

Some have built houses from this money.

If they don't remit they get beaten mercilessly.

Watch this


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Y3kuLzLkMA

The sorry state of the transportation sector in Nigeria is really worrisome.

It is unfortunate that one of the highest source of revenue generation is being left for touts and rogues.
Just like the military and police, this is a section which most people enter, not because of the passion but because of it looks like the only way out.
Drastic reforms is really needed in that department.

these agberos are working directly for Lagos state govt. have you forgotten that an average Yoruba man is known for extortion. may be you don't know why they call Tinubu JAGABAN, he was and still the leader of Agberos. just like Buhari was and still the leader of herdsmen. a good example is Fashola the former Govr of Lagos state with Agbero blood running in his veins, how he's busy extorting Nigerians their hard earned money in the name of electricity without giving them any light. Ambode is busy piling up levies on lagosians. you can see there's no different between Lagos government and Agberos.....


..... AGBERO rules LAGOS.

These Lagos agberos no be here o... na only if bus carry soldier them dey fear...

Buh when will Nigeria be sane. .....

Lalasticlala
Mynd44
Ishilove
Marpol
Semid4lyfe
Obinoscopy
Seun

fireback:
these agberos are working directly for Lagos state govt. [/b]have you forgotten that an average Yoruba man is known for extortion. may be you don't know why they call Tinubu JAGABAN[b],he was and still the leader of Agberos. just like Buhari was and still the leader of herdsmen. a good example is Fashola the former Govr of Lagos state with Agbero blood running in his veins, how he's busy extorting Nigerians their hard earned money in the name of electricity without giving them any light. Ambode is busy piling up levies on lagosians. you can see there's no different between Lagos government and Agberos.....


..... AGBERO rules LAGOS.

this one no get sense

Jagaban is a title giving to someone by the king of borgu kingdom.

A lot of you yeebos are just so dam dumb

They make money by simply shouting "ahhhhhhh, owo mi da"

Agbero na alausa extension staff na, they are above the law, but I know a govt will come and chase them out of lagos or better still send them to badagry to farm like marwa did

They are the omonile of the roads. And the government could care less about stopping them.

Fashola also signed a bill banning omonile activities on any piece of land in Lagos. Well guess what? On the site I'm managing, the client had to settle the area boys with 200k, yes, 200,000 NAIRA. Despite this, these hoodlums still come around to ask for 'owo granite' 'owo iyepe' 'owo cement' anytime our suppliers deliver these materials to our site. Sometimes they even have the audacity to ask for 'owo weekend' too. Threatening to stop the work going on if they're not paid.

I don't see how this is any different from the agberos in the streets.