Three members of a rival group belonging to the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, RTEAN, were feared dead and several others were injured during a clash yesterday in Iyana-Iba, Ojo Local Government Area, Lagos State.
A similar clash between transport unions was reported to have occurred in the Surulere area.
The clash, which began in the early hours of Wednesday, was reportedly caused by a dispute over control and the right to sell tickets and collect tolls from commercial buses at Ojo Park and its environs.
The scuffle erupted after some RTEAN members demanded the removal of the association's National President for alleged meddling.
Babatunde Kazeem, a leader of a rival group, accused Musa Muhammed, the National President of RTEAN, of meddling in the affairs and management of the state's union for selfish reasons.
"Three of our members have been killed by the invading rival group sponsored by the national body," Kazeem claims, "while one other is on the danger list at the hospital where he was rushed."
"Muhammad cannot be president of the union and chairman of the state at the same time."
We require a caretaker committee to run the union's affairs until substantive officers are elected. He is intimidating us by utilizing law enforcement agencies. In RTEAN Lagos State, we want peace, not war.
"We hereby request that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu step in and call the National President and his men to order before the crisis escalates into full-fledged violence."
"We hereby request that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu step in and call the National President and his men to order before the crisis escalates into full-fledged violence."
However, it took the intervention of the state Police Command to put a stop to the fighting and restore normalcy to the area after the warring factions dispersed.
LASG reads the riot act and investigates the fracas
During an emergency meeting with a faction of the group in Alausa, Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Sola Giwa, urged the warring factions to sheathe their swords or face the dire consequences, as police had been alerted and directed to arrest anyone caught disturbing the state's peace and tranquillity.
Giwa stated that the state government had launched a thorough investigation into the fracas in the Ojo and Surulere areas of the state in order to prevent a breakdown in law and order.
"We have begun an investigation into the allegations leveled against the union's National President with the goal of resolving every lingering issue," he said. As a result, everyone must keep the peace.
"The government has listened to your cries; we urge you to keep the peace because we will not hesitate to use the full force of the law against erring members who are caught."
Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, (RTEAN) clash at Iyana-Iba, Ojo Lagos state on September 28, 2022.