OBA/OWERRI ROAD, OKPOKO AXIS KEKE OPERATORS BEG GOV. SOLUDO TO SAVE THEM FROM ATMA, ANTI TOUT AGENCY

Eche Nwaobasi

Nnewi/Onitsha

Keke operators plying their trade along Oba-Owerri road and Okpoko area axis has appealed to Gov. Chukwuma Soludo to save them from excessive extortion by personnels of the Anambra State transport management agency, (ATMA) and state Anti tout outfit who they alleged uses all manners of tricks in the guise of enforcement of traffic sanity on roads and flushing of touts in the area to arbitrary arrest them and extort huge amount of their hard earned daily income on daily basis.

Making this passionate appeal to Gov Soludo while speaking to newsmen who are on routine check of activities in the area yesterday, Mr Charles Alagor, the chairman of Oba/Owerri road Zenith bank side of Upper Iweka, keke drivers union flanked by Mr Chibuike Godwin: PRO noted that the members who are mostly poor driving these keke on high purchase basis has been suffering these problem with some of been often deprived of their daily income by personnel of these two agencies.

He stated that the personnels of these two agencies has been using the peculiar nature of traffic in the areas to always arrest their members on flimsy excuses that they have contradicted one traffic offence or the other to extort huge amount of money for no just cause while on the part of anti touting outfit, c they usually invades our members Keke and often tag them as tout beat them up as well as torture them and be made to cough out huge money or risk been detained indefinitely.

While thanking God for giving Anambra people Gov. Soludo, He commended him for deciding to extend developmental strides to Okpoko a place tagged the domain of poor people, he commended him for his good IGR policies to Keke drivers which he said is not giving them any trouble to pay and appealed to him to look into the long contentious issue of imposing IGR on keke operators who genuinely go on maintenance and devise a way to make it easier for keke drivers who are on maintenance to cope.

Approached to react to this allegation, the zonal head of ATMA Operations in charge of the area which has its office along Onitsha Asaba expressway Onitsha head bridge axis refused to talk to journalists as well as disclose his name and his position but rather rudely referred News men to their Awka headquarters just as he muttered that keke operators has no moral right to complain as they all know that they are habitual offenders.

Newsmen also observed that the office were busy with a lot of people apprehended trying to negotiate their way out without going through the normal process of been issued with government approved receipt.