32 vehicles destroyed as Ibadan boils

The crisis rocking the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, in Oyo State, which started on Monday, took a violent dimension on Tuesday as 32 vehicles were destroyed in a clash among the union members.

The incident occurred at Express Quarry Nigeria Limited on Kilometre 15, Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Ekefa Village in Ibadan.

At the end of the fracas, at least 27 cars and five trucks were vandalised by the feuding members.

Nigerian Pilot learnt that the fracas arose from the way NURTW members were collecting N2, 500 from each truck driver for a load of granite from the quarry. A truckload of granite, a driver said, costs about N130, 000.

The truck drivers told newsmen that they wanted to pay once daily and lamented that N2,500 fee for each load of granite was exploitative.

It was gathered that dangerous weapons such as guns, cutlasses, broken bottles and clubs were freely used during the melee.

The fracas, which started at about 9:15am, left many people injured. No casualty was however recorded.

Workers of the quarry were said to have run into the bush and canal near the site for safety.

The pandemonium that trailed the crisis led to traffic logjam on the expressway, as commuters on both sides of the road to Lagos and Ibadan were stranded.

The Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Kola Sodipo, who visited to the scene of the incident yesterday, urged the stakeholders to maintain peace, saying the police were investigating the incident and promised to bring the culprits to book.

When our correspondent visited the scene of the fracas yesterday, the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, Toll Gate divisional headquarters, Ibadan, Mr. Olufemi Awoyale, anti-riot policemen, two Armoured Personnel Carriers, APCs, six Hilux vehicles and one Black Maria were sighted in the area.

Three workers in the quarry, Mr. Dada Oyebamiji, Mr. Lucky, Mr. Segun Adesina and Yinusa Olosun allegedly lost N1.4million, N250,000, N350,000 and N1.2million respectively during the fracas.

The incident was said to have been triggered by a protest on Monday by members of Oluyole Ibadan Granite Sellers and Hauler Association, Truck Owners Association and the truck rivers against the presence of NURTW office in the quarry site.

Some executive members of the NURTW came to the quarry on Monday and placated the protesters with a promise that a delegation of the state executive of the union would visit the quarry on Tuesday morning to resolve the matter amicably.

Awoyale (DPO) intervened in the matter by inviting five representatives of the warring factions for a meeting on Tuesday morning, which was still going on when the hoodlums stormed the quarry.

The policemen from Toll Gate were said to have responded swiftly and shot into the air to scare the troublemakers.

When the matter got out of hands, the police division called for reinforcement which led to the restoration of peace to the quarry.