The Coalition of Trailer and Tipper Owners and Drivers operating across Ogun and Lagos States has urged the Lagos State Government to urgently suspend the newly introduced ticket and levy, condemning it as a sudden imposition made without their awareness or involvement.
The leaders of the three associations disclosed this during a press conference held on Tuesday in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
The association leaders included Chief Nureni Ogunsola, President of the First Nigeria Lorry Drivers Association, Adetokunbo Adeoye, National Chairman of the New Born Tipper/Lorry Owners and Drivers Association, and Kamoru Amoo, Chairman of the Ajowa Tipper Lorry Drivers Owners Association .
While speaking on behalf of the three associations, the National Chairman, New Born Tippers/Lorry Owners and Drivers Association, Adetokunbo Adeoye, stressed that the new levy being introduced to the association is done out of their knowledge and as a result they stand against the new levy.
Adeoye, added that the new ticket and levy were introduced by the Lagos State Truck and Cargo Operators Committee (LASTCOC), a committee they don’t even knew when it was established and yet telling them that another ticket is on the way.
“As the owner and drivers association of the tippers and lorries, my appeal to both Lagos and Ogun State government, because we operate in both states is to rise up to our appealing as the ticket being introduced to us is on the high side, before this new one, there is one of ₦1,500, that one started with ₦200, go up to ₦500, again to ₦1,000 and now ₦1,500, and we have been taking that, we first agitate, no help from both sides and at end of the day, we succumbed to it.
“But this new one again, another ₦3,000 for truck, ₦1,000 for tipper is very high and this present situation of this country in this hardship that everyone of us are trying to manage ourselves to survive, so for having this new one, we, the association together with members, we reject it, we cannot and we are law abiding citizens, we don’t want chaos, we don’t want any crisis to happen in between the two states and the whole Nigeria”.
Adeboye, also used the medium to appeal to the governments of both states to reconsider the levy, emphasizing their cooperation with the government and their desire to avoid any unrest or crisis.
“Please, I am using this period to beg and appeal to our governors of Ogun and Lagos States, the LASTCOC committee, to reason to our complain before it goes out of hand, we cannot and we are not going to accept this new levy”, he added.
He, further emphasised that the Lagos State government should have called them to dialogue as stakeholders, and as the owners of the trucks, and drivers that are working for them, adding that, there has not been any benefit from the states, and even federal.
“They don’t give us garage, and we cannot pack beside roads, we have to look for every avenue to get a space for ourselves and not to obstruct the traffic logjam. The ticket was not given to us, they did not call us, they did not have a meeting with us, we don’t know what is our benefits, you introduced ₦1,500 we accept, then you bring another ₦1,000 daily, we operate only one time daily, before it is two trips but due to complain from the states, accidents here, accidents there, we reduced our journey to only one time for each truck daily and these levies is too much, how do we survive?”, He queried.
While also speaking on the issue of negotiation with the state governments, following the increment of levy, President of First Nigeria Tippers Association, Chief Ogunsola, said that there is no need for any negotiation with anyone because the ticket was passed to the association through a non-member, and this was done with force.
He said, “When we are not gathering these things in Lagos, we are just selling it there, and those purchasing it from us are not purchasing foods, that we will now force them to eat it.
“So having collected ₦3,000 from us on the road and where we gathered these things, we also pay VAT there, and so therefore, there is one we do pay ₦1,500 for before, which was accepted, this is another ₦3,000, so we don’t need to negotiate with anyone but to look into this issue critically. We won’t take it, it does not pay us, all the money we laboured for are spent on purchase of diesel”
