Road transport unions’ extortions worsen travellers’ woes

Despite the removal of petrol subsidy leading to higher fares, transport unions and police extortions have added more burden on travellers in Ogun and Lagos States, OLASUNKANMI AKINLOTAN writes

Motorists are charged over 200 per cent more than necessary fee over outrageous revenue transport unions squeeze out of them daily, commercial drivers have told The PUNCH.

Findings have shown that transport unions are not alone, policemen as well as officers of the Federal Road Safety Corps have also been contributing to travellers’ pains.

Some commercial drivers in Lagos and Ogun States told The PUNCH that the fares could have been less than half if the burden of transport union tickets, police and FRSC extortions were addressed.

Our correspondent observed policemen collecting money from motorists, especially on the Lagos-Sagamu Expressway in Ogun State.

In Ogun State, there are seven transport unions collecting levies from motorcyclists and tricyclists. These unions include; the National Union of Toad Transport Workers, the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, and the Ogun State Parks and Garages Management Board.

Others are the Amalgamated Commercial Motorcycle Owners and Riders Association of Nigeria and the Articulate Motorcycle Owners and Riders Association of Nigeria.

A driver who identified himself as Adebayo mentioned that the unions usually collect levies from the drivers that are equivalent to the fares of two passengers on each trip. He attributed this practice to the recent increase in fares, besides the removal of subsidy on premium motor spirit, commonly referred to as petrol, which shot up the prices of many commodities in the country.

Meanwhile, the average fare paid by commuters for intercity bus journeys in Nigeria in April 2024 surged to N7,122.57 from N3,994.51 in April 2023, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics Transport Fare Watch for April 2024.

The report also mentioned a minor decrease of 0.43 per cent month-on-month, with the average fare decreasing from N7,152.97 in March 2024.

“The average fare paid by commuters for bus journey intercity per drop was N7,122.57 in April 2024, indicating a decline of 0.43 per cent on a month-on-month basis compared to N7,152.97 in March 2024.

 “On a year-on-year basis, the fare rose by 78.31 per cent from N3,994.51 in April 2023,” the report read in part.

 Moreover, the report disclosed that Anambra State recorded the highest average fare for intercity bus travel, standing at N9,600 per trip.

Abia and Gombe States trailed closely, jointly occupying the second position with an average fare of N8,300 per trip, while Akwa Ibom State secured the third spot with N8,250 per trip.

Conversely, Kwara State registered the lowest average fare for intercity bus trips in April 2024, with travellers paying N5,500 per trip.

Following closely, Ebonyi State followed with an average fare of N5,600 per trip, while Taraba State secured the third position among states with the lowest fares, standing at N6,100 per trip.

Aside from the high cost of living, extortions by police and unchecked ticket levies by the transport unions are responsible for the hike in transport fares in the country.

Motorists in different parts of Lagos and Ogun decried the high fares, blaming it on exorbitant levies taken by transport unions, commonly called “agberos”.

Most travellers, who spoke with The PUNCH, noted that they decided to travel only when necessary, because of the fares that had doubled in the last one year.

A traveller, Ogechi Chima, travelling from Ejigbo Park in Lagos to Aba, disclosed that she paid N20,000 last year in March to Aba, but had to pay over N28,000 in April for the same trip

“Initially, I used to pay N10,000 for the trip from Ejigbo in Lagos to Aba years ago. The cost then increased to N17,000 and later N20,000. However, last month, the same trip cost about N30,000,” she explained.

Transporters express pains

Chibuzor Ugo in Oshodi, Lagos, who was visibly angry with the state of things, explained that mid-last year, drivers were paying N800 for each passenger going to the east to the transport unions, but the levy had jumped to N2,000 per passenger.

Ugo said travellers going to Onitsha, Owerri and Aba now pay between N16,000 and N19,000 for long buses instead of N12,000-N14,500; while the 18-seater buses were charged N25,000 compared to N19,500 before now.

He also added that some passengers who were willing to stand throughout the journey were asked to pay N15,000, adding that during the festive period, fares to the east could be as high as N30,000-N35,000.

Another driver at Jibowu, Yaba area of Lagos, Kingsley Aduka, also disclosed that fares to  Onitsha had gotten up to as high as N22,000, though cheaper than that of Oshodi, which was N25,000.

Also from Kuto Market in Abeokuta, Ogun State to Oshodi in Lagos, which was formally N1,800, is now N3,500.

Also, the fare from Abeokuta to Sagamu, which was initially N400, has risen to N1,000.

Also from Berger to Ikeja in Lagos, minibuses charge N500 as fares and pay N700 to union members on every trip, while N1,000 will also be paid as a ticket fee daily.

According to Fatai known as ‘Ile eru’, a transporter, the unions’ exorbitant charges are responsible for the high fares.

“They are too powerful; they decide how much they take from us, pretending that the government fixed it and there is nothing anyone can do about it. For instance, which driver will be happy overloading his car by carrying two people in front and four people in the back seat? This is killing the car! But what can we do, when these ‘agberos’ will collect the transport fare for two people immediately? They are richer than those working. Only God can help us,” he lamented.

At Iyana Ipaja in Lagos, an 18-seater bus collects N3,000 as a fare per passenger to Abeokuta and pays N8,000 to the transport union for every trip.

A driver identified as Adeogu told our correspondent that the unions do not only take N8,000 for each trip, but they also collect a share of every parcel sent through the bus.

“After collecting N8,000, they will also get a share of the money paid for parcels. We are at their mercy. They are the main reason for the high fares passengers pay,” he expounded.

Background

Giving a background to how the union came into being, 72-year-old Apostle Erastus Aladesuru, the founder of People of Praise International Ministry, located in Ikotun Egbe, and a former National Union of Road Transport Workers chairman in Kwara State in the 80s, explained that road union was set up to defend the collective interests of the motor transporters during the colonial era.

According to Aladesuru, in the 1930s, the transport union fought and successfully resisted attempts by the colonial government to impose higher duties on vehicles in areas where road transport was competing with the railway.

He explained that NURTW, which is the largest transport union in the country, was founded in 1978.

Aladesuru said that to manage the affairs of the union, the road transport workers set up an administrative structure, with secretariats established in units, branches, zones and states.

Each of these has secretaries and elected officers, who are headed by chairmen, to coordinate the activities of the transport union throughout the federation, FCT included.

“Even though the union consists of people of integrity, probity and sound intellectual reasoning, there is this misconception held by the public against its members, who perceive them as school dropouts, irresponsible, lazy and a bunch of miscreants. Unfortunately, this label was brought upon them by the unguided attitude of quite a number of them,” he stated.

Way out

The Director of Operations at a transport company, Binagu Nigeria Ltd, Ibrahim Adeniran, advised the state governments to sum up multiple taxes in a single ticket payment daily.

Adeniran stated that the exorbitant ticket fees fixed by the unions had caused hardship for motorists as well as discomfort for travellers.

“For instance, because drivers want to pay unions, they will discomfort travellers by squeezing passengers by making four people sit in a space meant for three people. It is unheard of for a driver to ask two passengers to sit in front of a car.

“The government need to really do something fast. They are affecting both the drivers and us, the vehicle owners,” he added.

  Government reacts

The Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation, Wale Musa, stated that the government was working on a total reorganisation of the commercial transport system in the state.

He stressed that the reorganisation would entail the identification of each transporter, adding that the government cannot fix fares until the transporters are known.

He noted that the reorganisation, according to the commissioner, would commence in the Lekki area of the state.

He said, “Transporters are in business and we do not fix their prices. We have the BRT buses and the BSL buses, we have total control over the prices of those ones and our prices are very competitive compared to other transporters in Lagos because we want to encourage people to use them. Our buses are always organised. Although we can’t cover the state, we are working on it.

“Also, we are working on a total reorganisation of the system. We call it the informal transport system. We have had a meeting with them and we signed a communique and when that process is completed, we will be able to regulate transport prices in Lagos State. We are starting the Lekki-Epe corridor and that should start in a few weeks.  We must know the transporters before they can be regulated and soon Lagosians will begin to see the dividend.”

Musa was silent on whether the prices would be reduced or not, saying, “By the time we know them, we will be able to understand how much the unions are collecting from transporters and what to do about it. Although you know unions have the right to take money from their members, we will ensure it is orderly, safe, and efficient and they do not stand on the road.

Efforts to get the Commissioner for Transport in Ogun to speak on the matter were futile as he neither picked up repeated calls put across to his telephone line nor responded to a text message of enquiry on the motorists’ concern.