Onitsha-Owerri, Onitsha-Awka Expressway Blocked By Truck Drivers Over Alleged Heavy Taxation

Articulated truck and lorry drivers on Friday morning blocked the expressway leading from Onitsha to Owerri, Onitsha through the Niger Bridge to Asaba and Onitsha to Enugu, causing heavy gridlock in the commercial city.

It was gathered that this was because of the heavy tax imposed on them by the Soludo Administration in Anambra State.

The Soludo-led administration had recently announced the payment of a levy of N30,000 for trailers loading and offloading goods in Anambra State, according to reports.

Other categories of vehicles affected are lorries and trucks which have prices, ranging from N25,000 and N20,000 respectively, for ten and six tyre lorries and trucks.

A driver, Mr Odion Omoroge, who spoke to journalists said he drove all through the night from Abuja to Onitsha and was heading to Benin.

He said Onitsha was the only City where he was usually harassed by touts disguised as government officials, just to extort from him.

“The problem with this government as I observe is that it believed that money collected from the people as levies and tax and other revenues are the only money that it will use to work for the people.

“It is not talking about money from the government, and one begins to wonder if Anambra State is not getting any allocation from the Federal government.

“What we see anytime we are coming into the state is terrible.

“Am afraid that one day there may be a blood revolution by the people, against this government, because everything it is doing is at the extreme.

“Touts are everywhere in Onitsha violently collecting money from people, even men and women on uniforms are violently stopping motorists on the roads accusing them of one false traffic offence or the other and violently collecting their car and vehicles key.”

It was, however, learnt that normalcy has returned to the area, as the truck drivers have been convinced to leave the road.

Meanwhile, the roads in Onitsha are still blocked as a result of heavy traffic.

As of the time of filing this report, traffic agents were battling to clear the roads.