FEATURES
Tricycle Riders Beseige Delta Revenue Office in Warri, Protest Alleged Police Number Plate Extortion
Commercial tricycle operators, commonly known as Keke riders, in their hundreds on Wednesday protested at the Warri office of the Delta State Board of Internal Revenue (DBIR), accusing police officers of ongoing harassment and illegal extortion.
They claimed that the police are claiming that their tricycle plate numbers are not registered in the revenue system, a development which is causing them to face unwarranted demands for money.
The riders alleged that police operatives in Warri and its environs are exploiting the absence of their plate numbers in the DBIR records as they claimed as a pretext to extort them.
They obstructed traffic along the busy Airport Road recently renamed “Governor Sheriff Oborevwori Way”, causing a standstill for vehicles. The protesters chanted solidarity songs, aiming to draw the attention of government to their grievances.
Some of the inscription in the placard bored by the protesters reads; “License Office, tell us why our plate numbers are not registered in your system”, “Police are harassing us”, “Government provide us jobs please”, “Police leave Keke riders alone” and “License Office, what happened to our plate numbers” amongst others.
They accused police of illegal arrest and extortion of ten thousand naira on a daily basis over the situation chanting “Police in Warri and its environ are troubling us with illegal arrest and extortion”.
They warned that the issue may degenerate into a major crisis if not properly handled as one of the tricycle operator who gave his name simply as Eyekpimi said “if the Police are looking for illegal officers they should go and arrest those working at DBIR’s office”.
They claimed that police are often on the road in Warri and it’s environs for the seek of illegally extorting Keke who are only hustling to eke out a living for their families.
Eyekpimi who addressed newsmen noted however that it is possible the Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori may not be aware of the development in Warri, and called on him to investigate the issue of tricycle number plate not appearing in DBIR system.
“Police in Warri are worrying us. Area Command, Ekpan,”B” Division and all of them.”, he said.
Eyekpimi said their number plate were duly registered by licensing office and wondered why police should trouble them that it is not in the system.
“Our plate numbers are validly registered, that is why we have them because how can we be in possession of number plates that are not registered by the government.?, he queried.
According to him, “Do we have machines to print illegal plate numbers? If Police are looking for officials behind number plates, they should go and arrest them in licensing office. Nor be road them go come arrest us”, he retorted in popular Warri pidgin English.
Another tricycle operator, who gave his name as Jeffery Awhe Akioja said, “the Police are troubling us. They mount road blocks to collect illegal development fees which we pay on the road daily.
“They will stop us and say our plate number is illegal and not on the system, this is the latest incident in Warri and environ.
“They came with basket/waste bin, we conquered that one. They came with tapouline and that we should not use black to paint our Keke, we conquered that one.”
“As we manage to balance the Keke we carried on hire purchase for between 8-9million naira. We are still managing it because, there’s no jobs in the country and State, he lamented.
“There is so much insecurity in the Country and the Police could not see that the Kidnapping and criminality is on the rise. There is terrorism, banditry, farmers are not going to farm again, people are being killed everyday but instead of addressing those issues they say Keke is their problem.
“If they hold your Keke, you will pay N10,000. If you don’t have it, they arrest you to the Police station whereas, it is the State Government that registers plate numbers for us.
“Today, we decided to protest to licensing office because of Police harrassment, illegal arrest and extortion. “B” Division don’t want to allow us rest. Mopol base, Ogunu, Enerhen, all of them. Enough is enough”, he stated.
Another protester, Wisdom Omote also bared his mind just as he aligned himself with the other speakers
Narrating his ordeal in the hands of Police, Omote said, “Police from Enerhen Division held me, they checked my particulars and it was correct, they said paper nor dey for number plate.”
“if they’re looking for who committed offence, it is not we riders that committed offence. They should go and arrest the.offenders in the licensing office”.
When contacted for his response to the allegations, Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Bright Edafe, said that no formal report of alleged police extortion have been lodged, urging the protesting parties to make use of the police control room number to lodge complaint if there are any.
“No complaint of police extortion has reached us. Not even one complaint, if there is any with specific details, our lines are open 247 to attend to it. For now, we can’t get something out of nothing”, he retorted.