Driver Cries Out To Sanwo-Olu, LASTMA Boss Over N8,000 Bribe

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FILE PHOTO: LASTMA officials talking to a commercial bus driver

FILE PHOTO: LASTMA officials talking to a commercial bus driver

Paul Iyoghojie

The Driver in charge of a Volkswagen bus with Reg. Plate Number. FKJ476 XB, Kingsley Ibeanuchi have appealed to the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu and the general manager in charge of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) to come to his rescue and order a Lastma Official identified simply as Junaid attached to Lekki LASTMA office to release his bus which was impounded since 27 November 2019 over his refusal to pay back the N8,000 he Junaid refunded to him at the LASTMA office, Oshodi.

He said that he decided to appeal to the governor because the impoundment of his bus he and his wife who just gave birth to a month old baby has been facing untold hardship and hunger as the bus had been the source of their livelihood.

Narrating his ordeals to PM News; “Ibeanuchi allegedly stated; Junaid and Odeshina arrested my bus in November 2019 for no just cause and took my bus to their office at Lekki, Lagos with a directive that I would pay them N10,000 before they would release my bus to me.

“And after I managed to pay them N8,000, they released my bus and in anger because I did not commit any offence when Junaid arrested me, I called a senior official at the LASTMA Headquarters office at Oshodi, Lagos to inform him of my plight and the senior LASTMA official invited me, Junaid and Odeshina to his office for interrogation.

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During questioning at the brought office, the two LASTMA officials allegedly admitted collecting the money from me and the senior LASTMA interrogator ordered Odeshina to refund the N8,000 to me and Odeshina refunded the money to me.

“I was shocked on 27 November, 2019 at the Lekki traffic light, Junaid and Oluwa came from nowhere and entered my bus and said I was under arrest and when I asked them of my offense, Junaid said that he arrested me in retaliation of the N8,000 he and Odeshina refunded to me and that I must refund the money to them or else they would charge me to court to go and suffer and pay more money. I am now appealing to Governor Sanwo-Olu and the General Manager of LASTMA to assist me to release my bus before hunger would kill my newborn baby because I did not commit an offence.

Ibeanuchi stated; the leadership of the LASTMA including the provost department has been doing their best to inculcate discipline on its personnel which had reduced the usual complaints by motorists, but LASTMA officials at Lekki, Lagos are not ready to change from their extortions of motorists on a daily basis, he stated.

Efforts to contact the General Manager of LASTMA and the head of LASTMA at Lekki proved abortive.

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