Delta State chapter of the National Commercial Tricycle and Motorcycle Owners/Riders Association, on Wednesday, downed tools in a peaceful protest against police harassment against its members.
The group appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Sheriff Oborevwori to wade in urgently.
During the peaceful protest held at Udu Road in Udu Local Government Area of Delta State, the NACTOMORAS members alleged that officers of the Delta State Police Command were being used by rival groups to obstruct their lawful transport business activities.
The protesters cited the death in 2015 of one of their members and the seizure of over 150 tricycles and motorcycles valued at more than N150 million as a direct result of police actions.
They further highlighted that the National Human Rights Commission in 2022 recommended that the Police cease harassment of the association’s members in the state.
They recalled that the commission also advised the payment of N8 million to the family of the deceased member.
The group however claimed that despite these recommendations, the Police have not complied but rather continued to harass and arrest their members indiscriminately.
Speaking to journalists during the protest, the National Public Relations Officer of the association, Goodwin Ikolo, maintained that they “are protesting the high-handedness of the Nigeria Police Force in Delta State over issues related to our operation.”
He added, “As law-abiding citizens, we belong to a noble association registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission, and we are aware that the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria guarantees freedom of association.”
Ikolo accused the Delta State Ministry of Transportation and a rival association of using the police, along with recruited thugs and touts, to obstruct the association’s operations.
He said, “They molest, witch-hunt, and arrest our members across the State, obstructing our business activities.”
Also speaking with journalists, other NACTOMORAS officials, Felix Mamakpacha and Evangelist Solomon Isukuru urged President Tinubu and Governor Oborevwori to urgently rescue them “from the ongoing police harassment and the actions of recruited thugs and touts.
“We believe the President and Governor are not yet aware of our plight, which is why we are appealing before the situation escalates further,” they said.
When contacted on the incident, the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Bright Edafe, said that the command “only recognises and deals with the bodies known by the Delta State Government”.
The police spokesman said, “The association is proscribed in Delta, and it’s unknown to the state government.”
Edafe added, “If the leadership of NACTOMORAS wants to operate in Delta, they should go to court and enforce their right. If they have issues, they should go to court so that the court will give a verdict.”
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