Metro

Commuters Stranded As Truck Drivers Protest Bad Roads, Block Auchi-Benin Highway

Published

3 years ago

October 21, 2022

Commuters on the Auchi-Benin highway, Edo State, were stranded as hundreds of protesting truck drivers on Friday blocked the road to protest the deplorable state of the road.

While the protest lasted, all the adjoining roads that could serve as detours were also blocked.

The problem became compounded given the penultimate week suspension of three Head of Service, HoS, in three local government areas of the state for allowing articulated vehicles to destroy feeder roads in their locality.

The action led to the closure of Trunk C road in Edo North Senatorial District of the state to .

The angry drivers blocked the road as motorists were forced to look for alternative routes into and out of the state.

The protesting truck drivers, who carried placards with various inscriptions, vowed to continue their protest until their demands were met.

Saturday Tribune noticed a long stretch of articulated vehicles parked indiscriminately, piled up along the Jattu Junction and the Auchi Polytechnic school gate .

One of the coordinators of the protest, Mr. Donald Etamobe, who spoke to journalists said: “We will not stop this protest for good roads until the Federal Government addresses them.” Kadiri said.

“The protest became inevitable due to the bad road from Auchi to Benin which is impassable at the moment. Subsequently, the barricade of alternative routes by the Edo State Government, hence the peaceful protest,” Etamobe said.

A commuter, Lawal Abdullahi, told journalists that he parked his car at Aviele and took a motorcycle to his office at Auchi.

another of the motorists trapped in the gridlock, Jimoh Kadiri , said he had remained on the same spot on the road for over seven hours.

Mr. Kadiri described the development as bad for the state and the country. He, however called on the Federal Government to fix the road.

Metro

Police Declare Two Wanted Over Attack On Ahoada-East LGA Administrator, Theft

Published

17 hours ago

July 6, 2025

Editor

The Rivers State Police Command has declared two top officials of the Ahoada-East Local Government Area wanted over their alleged involvement in the brutal attack on the LGA’s Sole Administrator, Hon. Goodluck Iheanachor.

Declared wanted are Mr. Hector Ekakita, Chief Security Officer (CSO) of Ahoada-East LGA, and Mr. Aloni Olodi, Chief of Staff (COS) of the LGA.

In a statement issued on Sunday by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Grace Iringe-Koko, the police said the duo is wanted for alleged criminal conspiracy, stealing, assault occasioning harm, and attempted murder. The offenses stem from a violent incident that occurred on June 20, 2025, at the Ahoada-East Council Secretariat.

According to the statement, Ekakita and Olodi, alongside a group of about 30 others, allegedly conspired to assault the Sole Administrator, inflicted injuries on him, forcibly obtained his signature under duress, stole his mobile phones and sensitive documents, and carted away both personal and official property from his office.

The police revealed that despite repeated invitations, the suspects have failed to appear for questioning, prompting the declaration.

“The Rivers State Police Command has declared the following individuals wanted… Mr. Hector Ekakita – Chief Security Officer (CSO), Ahoada-East LGA, and Mr. Aloni Olodi – Chief of Staff (COS), Ahoada-East LGA,” the statement read.

“Their actions resulted in bodily harm to the administrator, who continues to receive medical treatment.”

The Commissioner of Police, CP Olugbenga A. Adepoju, psc, mnips, has urged the suspects to report to the Police State Headquarters on Moscow Road, Port Harcourt, without further delay.

He also warned that anyone found aiding or shielding the suspects would face the full weight of the law.

“The Rivers State Police Command remains steadfast in its commitment to justice and maintaining public peace and safety,” the statement concluded.
(VANGUARD)

Metro

10 Die In Ogun Night Bus Crash

Published

22 hours ago

July 6, 2025

Editor

No fewer than 10 persons have been confirmed dead, while three others sustained injuries in a lone crash involving a Mitsubishi bus on the Ijebu-Ode–Ibadan Expressway.

Mr Babatunde Akinbiyi, spokesperson for the Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Corps (TRACE) in Ogun, confirmed the incident in a statement on Sunday.

Akinbiyi said the accident occurred at about 8:30 p.m. on Friday at Ome Bridge, Awa, along Ijebu-Ode–Ibadan highway in Ijebu North Local Government Area.

He stated that the lone crash involved a Mitsubishi bus, registration number EJ829-LSR, which was conveying 15 passengers at the time.

According to Akinbiyi, seven male and three female passengers died. Three others were injured, while a toddler and one adult escaped unhurt.

He said preliminary findings indicate that overspeeding and wrongful overtaking led to the accident.

“Eyewitnesses said the driver wrongly overtook another vehicle at high speed and could not regain control after noticing an oncoming vehicle.

“The driver veered off the road, hit an abandoned gravel pile beside the bridge, and plunged the vehicle into the river,” Akinbiyi explained.

He said the deceased were taken to Ijebu-Ode General Hospital’s morgue, while the injured were also being treated at the same facility.

The spokesperson urged motorists to avoid speeding and to refrain from travelling at night, stressing the importance of road safety at all times.

Metro

NDLEA Detains Couple, 2 Daughters For Alleged Drug Running

Published

23 hours ago

July 6, 2025

Editor

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Sunday said it has arrested and detained a businessman, his wife and two daughters over alleged drug peddling.

A statement by the NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, in Abuja, stated that a family friend of theirs was also taken into custody.

Babafemi said that this came after an investigation revealed that the family ran a major illicit drug distribution network in Lagos involving a family friend.

“The couple was first arrested on Friday, June 13, by operatives of the Department of State Security (DSS) in Ojo area of the state and transferred to NDLEA along with 277.5kg of skunk.

“While they were still being investigated in custody, credible intelligence revealed that the family business was going on in his house.

“This led to a raid of their home and a packing store where 231kg of the same substance was recovered on Tuesday, July 1.”

Meanwhile, NDLEA operatives at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, on Wednesday, July 2, intercepted a frequent flyer for drug trafficking.

Babafemi said that the suspect specialised in conveying goods for customers from Nigeria to Italy and vice versa.

“He was found to have hidden 7,660 pills of tramadol 225mg and 200mg inside food items packed among other goods he was conveying to Italy.

“He claimed that he was to be paid the sum of 800 euros upon successful delivery of the drug consignment in Italy,” he said.