They just take over some strategic streets and extort money from members of the public. Whether you are guilty or not guilty, they take you to this place, issue fake receipts, and we have seen a number of the fake receipts. One was shown to us this morning, and we find a similar example here now. “So, I want to once again publicly announce that these men called EDSTMA, have since been disbanded. They have no business on the roads. Henceforth, anybody they harass, the person should report them to the nearest police station. We are going to set up a monitoring squad, made up of policemen, both plain clothes and uniformed policemen to arrest anyone that decides to turn our high way to extortion point. Anyone that harasses motorists in the state will be sent to prison.” He said: “So, I want to again appeal to members of the public not to part with money to anybody. Nobody is authorized to collect one naira from anybody. If taxes are to be paid, taxes are to be paid to the banks, not cash to anybody. All those cash they have been collecting are illegal, and they are going into individual pockets.
We want to manage Edo traffic, but not to subject people to untold hardship and dehumanizing tactics. Government cannot use thugs to enforce laws. Laws must be enforced by law enforcement agents. “So, anybody wearing EDSTMA uniform by whatever ID cards they have, all of them are fake, because none of them has appointment letters. All those I have seen, I have asked them, ‘where are your appointment letters?’ And they said, ‘I don’t have’. Even the few with IDs, they are the old ID cards of people we have disbanded. So, I have directed the Commissioner, and he must ensure that he searches everybody and collects all the illegal ID cards that they are parading. So, I have warned everybody. So, all of you wearing this EDSTMA uniform, go in now and remove them. If you don’t remove them, any of you found with them will be dealt with.”
It would be recalled that after militantly establishing Edo State Traffic Management Authority, EDSTMA, which was passed into law by the State House of Assembly and assented to on August 5, 2010, the governor turned violently against the established law without reverting to the House of Assembly and without considering the tax payers money that when into the training of the EDSTMA officials. Worst still, the governor did not take into account the efforts of Lagos government and Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA initiative toward the establishment of EDSTMA.
Mr. Young Arebamen, the former Lagos Police henchman retired, an Edo indigene who restructured LASTMA on the auspices of Lagos state government in 2004 and help to put EDSTMA in place must have been writhing in indignation over the abominable bedlam the Benin roads have become. That is if it is ever reported, or he ever chanced upon the horrible places like the New Benin, Oba Market, Mission, Akpakpava, Ekenwan, Airport and Ring Roads that exhibit the dirty old city’s dung. Earlier, before the present reconstituted EDSTMA two months ago, the governor had contracted Edo Traffic Management to his politcal thugs. One Rev. Ojo Patrick was regulating the traffic at the King’s Square; Ikpoba Hill area was controlled by Mr. Alile Osaretin, Mr. Monday Ogiegor was in charge of Aduwawa axis, Siloko Zone was operated by Mr. Ephraim Odobo, Ugbowow Zone was controlled by Mr. Israel Osato, Ogbemudia Ben and JohnBull Edenazogie, while Sapele Road was under the supervision of Eke Elvis.
The disbandment of EDSTMA is politics gone awry. The plight of the people has clashed with the ostensible greed of the power monsters. The fate of Edo people is utterly sealed by cultists and denizens unleashed on the people by the same governor they voted for. These quack and hardly educated traffic managers who allegedly help to furnish terror before and during elections got the blessing of the governor. “The essence of authorised traffic management outfit, one of the victims of EDSTMA opined, is synonymous with intermodern transport system across the globe which supports business development, attracts jobs, and enhance quality of life by creating a transportation network that minimizes congestion and emissions, while improving safety and reliability. Modern urban transportation help to predict, manage and integrate traffic operation which in turn helps emerging market cities to stabilise.
However, an eye witness countered that the governor ordered the arrest of four staffers of EDSTMA on arrival at the Ministry of Transport office, including the head of operations. Also arrested is Mr. Ohimai Elvis Amu, who is in charge of zone 4, Akpakpava/Sokponba axis. The governor pointed ordered that one Miss Biose Queen who is a female staff of the reconstituted EDSTMA should be arrested and prosecuted, why he exonerates Mr. Austine Avbakhavbokun, the EDSTMA boss, Mr. Olu Koga and others off the hook. An insider source told FreePress that the governor’s claim that there is nothing like EDSTMA is a mere face saving gambit, saying the governor signed the employment letters of two Chief Executive Officers a few weeks ago to take charge of the agency and gave five million naira N5,000,000 to the overall boss, Mr. Austine Evbakhavbokun, Commissioner of police retired. EDSTMA was disbanded before 2015 general elections so as to save the APC from terrible humiliation as thugs in traffic uniform kept terrorising motorists on a daily basis. Edo electorate are watching how possibly Governor Adams Oshiomhole will sustain the momentum by approbating and repprobating.
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