A federal lawmaker, Rep. Babatunde Hunpe, on Saturday pleaded for calm as commercial motorists protested police extortion on the Lagos-Badagry highway.
Hunpe, representing Badagry Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, made the appeal in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Badagry, near Lagos.
On May 22, commercial motorists protested what they described as “high rate of police extortion on the Lagos Badagry Expressway.
“I was not happy when I heard about the protest by motorists plying Lagos-Badagry Expressway on the extortion by the security agents.
“The extortion has been on for long and has become a recurring decimal.
“I have sent a high-powered delegation led by Rep. Setonji Balogun to the Area Commander of Area K Police Station, Morogbo over the protest.
“The area commander assured me that he had personally waded into the matter
“Thereafter, the area commander met with the motorists union, drivers and stakeholders and promised to reconvene another meeting after sallah holiday,” he said.
The lawmaker appealed to the protesting motorists to sheave their swords and wait for the outcome of the meeting with the security agents.
Hunpe also appealed to other security agencies, including the Nigeria Immigration Service, Customs, Federal Road Safety Corps, Vehicle Inspection Officers and the Lagos State Transport Management Authority, to consider the pain being passed to commuters. (NAN)
