The Road Transport Employees Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Rivers State chapter has decried the level of harassment of its members in the Rumuola axis of the Obio/Akpor Local Government Area.
The Public Relations Officer of the association, Mr Ogidi Albert in a chat with newsmen on Wednesday in Port Harcourt, alleged that their members were being brutalized for non-payment of park levies.
He claimed that members of the Nigerian Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), at Rumuola were continuously intimidating and beating up RTEAN members, inspite of efforts to resolve the matter.
Albert noted that however that the NURTW lacked capacity to slam levies on them for motor park and added that NURTW also demand daily tickets and maintenance tickets from them.
According to him, “all our drivers are being humiliated because of various levies which they have imposed on us, which they do not even have the right to collect. We have a terminal base along and not the motor park”.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of NURTW, Rumuola chapter, Mr Julius Uzoma, described as fake, the allegations of RTEAN saying “there is no truth in what they are claiming”.
Uzoma, pointed out however, that paying park levies were mandatory for all commercial drivers in the area and maintained that NURTW was duly empowered to demand such levies.
He explained that three past chairmen of the local government had given approval of the disputed area to NURTW for their use, which the RTEAN has refused to give up.
He further said, already the NURTW has taken legal action by seeking to obtain a court restrain order against RTEAN.
Tonye Nria-Dappa
