[dropcap]T[/dropcap]here is an ongoing pandemonium around Coconut axis, inwards the Tin Can Island Port of Lagos as touts clash with truck drivers. Already, four truck drivers were allegedly shot and have been rushed to the hospital.
Confirming the development to Grassroots Publishers online exclusively, Alhaji Innua Mohammed, chairman of dry cargo section of National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) said the fight has started early in the morning. Many port users were in panic and could not access the port through the Tin Can axis.
Innua confirmed that officials of the union were attacked by the hoodlums who were alleged members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW)
“At night, these area boys mobilised themselves with police escorts from Trinity Police Station, some of the drivers that were sleeping in their trucks were shot, matcheted and trucks were destroyed, they wanted to start burning some trucks”
“Apart from the driver they shot with their locally made pistol, we have about four people they matcheted”
Speaking with our correspondent on the cause of the clash, one of the drivers said the area boys were annoyed that trucks have hindered free movement of their buses coming out from Ajegunle area.
He alleged that the area boys got help from LASTMA officials and blocked the main expressway coming out from Tin Can Port, so as to give way for buses coming out from Ajegunle.
He said “We were in the truck, we didn’t even know what was going on, all of a sudden we saw the area boys coming out and matchetting us and shooting at us, I have personally taken three people to the hospital”
“My conductor is currently at the hospital, they have extracted eighteen bullets from his body already”
“The boys were escorted by police, the area boys were shooting guns while the police was shooting their teargas”
“These area boys are National Union of Road Transport Workers, they said it is because their trucks were not having access to move freely”
He alleged that the hoodlums extort as much as N80,000 from trucks trying to pass through Ajegunle in order to beat traffic. Union officials were trying to calm down the aggrieved drivers as at the time of filing this report.
By : Emeji Noble
