Abia, Imo Checkpoints: Travellers Accuse Police, Army Of Extortion On Xmas Day

Commuters in Imo and Abia who are travelling during Christmas have expressed deep concern over the sharp hike in fares by transporters.

They also decried the longer travelling time and stress occasioned by the “numerous” military and police checkpoints mounted at close range on the various routes in the South-East.

A cross-section of the people said in separate interviews that they spend longer on the road than normal due to the multiple checkpoints. Also, the drivers alleged extortion by the operatives who man the checkpoints.

A commercial vehicle driver, Charles Agwulonu, who plies the Owerri-Aba route, lamented that the trip, which ought to last for 40 minutes, now takes about two hours due to avoidable delays at checkpoints.

Also, Ugochukwu Okeiyi, who plies the Owerri-Umuahia route, said the ongoing reconstruction of the road by the federal government was impeding smooth vehicular movement, especially with more vehicles on the road during the yuletide celebration.

Mr Okeiyi said security operatives at checkpoints extorted drivers.

“The money we spend in settling the military and police at checkpoints is transferred to passengers; hence the fare increase,” he said.

Travellers from Owerri to Enugu and Port Harcourt also complained about the numerous road checkpoints and the resultant delays.

Chinwendu Uju said the development exposes commuters to avoidable risks and inhuman treatment, as passengers were sometimes made to disembark from their vehicles and trek across military checkpoints.

A traveller, Chukwudi Okeke, said that checkpoints had become “money spinners” for operatives rather than a security measure to check the activities of criminal elements.

“Rarely do these operatives at checkpoints stop crime from happening because even the criminal elements also drop money and pass and go ahead to execute their operations,” Mr Okeke said.

Other travellers bemoaned the hike in fares, especially from Owerri to Lagos and Abuja.

Transport companies, such as Peace Mass Transit and ABC, charge between N23,000 and N25,000 from Owerri to Lagos and between N35,000 and N38,000 from Owerri to Abuja.

Also, commuters now pay as much as N5,500 and N17,300 for Hiace and Sienna buses from Owerri to Port Harcourt, respectively. Fares from Owerri to Aba also increased from N2,500 to N3,000, while Owerri to Umuahia increased from N3,000 to N4,000 by Hiace and Sienna buses.

In Abia, commuters and commercial vehicle drivers also go through similar experiences in terms of the fare hikes and multiple military and police checkpoints that delay vehicular movements.

A driver, Sunday Emetuh, who plies the Umuahia-Ohafia route, said that their major problem was the deplorable condition of the road, which is currently undergoing rehabilitation by the state government.

Mr Emetuh said that because of the dilapidation of the road, drivers go to Ohafia through Bende Road, which the federal government is also fixing.

He regretted that the rehabilitation work had suffered serious setbacks due to its “politicisation” by some politicians from the area. He blamed last Sunday’s fatal accident at the Mmuri end of the road, which claimed eight lives, on the deplorable condition of the road.

“For now, we have no other problem because we are not disturbed by the army or police on the route,” Mr Emetuh said.

For Theophilus Onyeze, a driver on the Umuahia-Owerri route, the “mode of operation” at the military checkpoints was causing long delays, ranging from 30 minutes to one hour at a particular spot.

A commuter, Ndubuisi Iheme, said the problem they were facing was the fare hike from Umuahia to Aba. He said the fare had been N1,500 since early November, but the long Coaster buses increased it to N2,000 for a 45-minute journey.

He also said the presence of the FRSC, the army and the police on the route delays vehicular movement and increases travelling time.

A civil servant in Umuahia, Promise Kanu, said the hike in fares increased the cost of goods and services. Mr Kanu said that he paid N1,700 to Aba from Umuahia as against N1,500 charged last week.

He said that the development had worsened the economic hardship, adding that most traders in Umuahia usually source their wares from Aba.

According to him, the hike in fares will naturally reflect in the cost of goods and services.

Mr Kanu called on the government at all levels to provide interventions that would cushion the effect of the general increase in the cost of living.

Another resident, Ibeabuchi Jerry-Gab, said that he feared many people might be unable to travel to their villages for Christmas.

He further said some prospective travellers got stranded at the park when they realised their budgets were insufficient for their trip.

Some other prospective holidaymakers described the situation as frustrating and “no longer acceptable to the masses.” They blamed the drivers for the hike, saying that the fare hike was unjustified, given the marginal cut in the price of petrol.