By EDEKI IGAFE

Hundreds of commercial tricycle operators, popularly called (keke riders), on Wednesday staged a peaceful protest to the head office of the Delta Board of Internal Revenue (DBIR) in Warri.

The protesters were agitating over alleged Police harassment, extortion and illegal arrest of their members.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the protesters blocked a section of the Airport Road, obstructing vehicular movement while chanting solidarity songs.

They continued to other parts of the town as they were not attended to by an officer at the internal revenue office.

They carried placards with inscriptions such as, “Police leave Keke riders alone”, “Government, please provide us jobs” among others.

They alleged that police in Warri and its environ were disturbing them with illegal arrestd and extortion on daily basis.

The tricyclists warned that the situation might result in crisis, if the matter was not well handled by the relevant government agencies.

One of the protesters, Mr Jeffery Akioja alleged that the police mounted road blocks and collected illegal development fees from them on daily basis.

Akioja added that sometimes, the police would fault their plate numbers, describing the plates as illegal and not on the government’s database.

“Today, we decided to protest to the Delta licensing office because of the harassment, illegal arrests and extortion. We are saying, enough is enough.

“The police came up with basket/waste bin, we obeyed. They also came with side cover for the tricycle using trampoline, and that we should not use black colour to paint our Keke which we also adhered to. The directives kept mounting ,” he said.

Akioja said that most of the commercial tricycle riders got their them on hire purchase .

“As we make installment payments for the tricycles we bought for between N8 and 9 million, we are still being taxed illegally, our members can no longer cope.

” If they stop you and bring up charges unknown to you, you will pay N10,000 and if you do not have it, they will take you to the Police station,” he said.

Also, Mr Wisdom Omote, while narrating his ordeal in the hands of the police, said that their harassment is unpleasant and can no longer be tolerated.

“Police held me, they checked my particulars and it was correct, they said my plate number did not have a paper,” he said.

Mr Sunday Eyekpimi also said their number plates are duly registered by the licensing office and wondered why the police should continue to harass them on claims that it is not in the p system.

“Our plate numbers are validly, that is why we have them, how do we get number plates that are not registered by the government,” Eyekpimi asked.

Responding, SP Bright Edafe, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Delta Command, in Whatsapp messages told NAN that the command had not received any complaint about police extortion in the state.

“Not even one complaint, if there is any with specific details, our lines are open everyday to attend to it.

“For now, we can not get something out of nothing,” Edafe said.(NAN)