Again, Drivers Block Benin-Lagos Road over Robbers Killing of Pregnant Woman

By Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City

Commuters and motorists plying Benin-Lagos road were stranded for several hours following protest by as luxury bus drivers who barricaded the road against alleged killing of a pregnant woman and a male passenger on the Young Shall Grow Transport Service by armed robbers in the early hours of yesterday.

A driver with the Ezewanta Transport Service and his conductor were also shot and taken to an undisclosed hospital for treatment.

On the first day of last month, armed robbers shot and killed passengers on the same Benin-Lagos Express road which led to a protest by motorists plying the road which left commuters stranded for several hours.

Consequently, daily newspapers such as were held for several hours and could not distribute their papers.

According to Mr. Sulaman Tajudeen, driver with the Complete Sports who arrived Benin City at 2:20pm yesterday, the luxury bus drivers blocked the road in protest of those who were shot and killed and the frequent robbery attacks on the Benin-Lagos express road.

Tajudeen said the protesters  were not willing to leave the roads until the government put an end to the robbery attack on the road.

He said at the heat of the protest, the luxury transport union of the zone who called for the protest went to ascertain the health conditions of those with gunshot wounds and were told by the doctors that they were in stable conditions and that the sum of N35,000 should be deposited to commence their treatment.

According to him, “The union immediately swung into action by asking stranded passengers and transporters to contribute their quota to foot their hospital bills which the passengers all sympathetically did.

“The union being satisfied with the response gotten from the commuters and other drivers, decided that the road should be cleared for vehicular movement”.

However an attempt to get the reactions of the Edo State  police proved abortive as several phone calls put across to the Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Joseph Kombe were left unanswered.