Commercial drivers plying the Enugu-Onitsha express way have appealed to the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Azubuike Ihejirika, to save them from the alleged extortion and harassment they suffer in the hands of soldiers manning various check points along the road.
The angry drivers, who spoke to journalists under condition of anonymity, alleged that the soldiers have turned the high way into compulsory illegal toll gates.
According to them, commercial drivers were on daily basis forced to pay between 100 to 2,000 naira depending on the type of vehicle involved.
“Those trailers carrying cow from the North to eastern part of the country are always forced to pay between N1,000 to N2,000, lorries, N500 while mini bus drivers pay 100 to 200 naira, depending on the type of load or passenger you are conveying.
“So, we want Ihejirika and the GOC of 82 Division, Enugu to know that the men they sent out to Onitsha Enugu express way to check crime are now tax collectors, and the most painful aspect is that with all impunity, they harass innocent citizens with their guns”, one of them alleged.
It was further alleged that the soldiers always made available a big Ghana must go bag in a nearby bush, manned by leader of the team, who also directed and supervised drivers on how to drop the loot.
One of the drivers, who gave his name as Peter Aneke, mentioned specifically Umunba Ndiuno, check point, in Ezeagu Local Government Area of Enugu State, as one of the places where the soldiers perpetrate the unholy conduct.
Aneke, who said he is a graduate of the Institute of Management and Technology IMT, Enugu, but ventured into driving due to lack of better job, stated that “these soldiers had remained a torn on the flesh of commercial drivers along this road since they mounted the checkpoints.
“Let me tell you the truth, these soldiers are becoming a serious problem to us along the road, because every day a mini bus driver spends no less than N1000 on them, this is outside the one you will give to police.
“If you refuse to give them money, they will ask you to start jumping like a frog, in some instances, they will take you to a nearby bush where they will give you cutlass to star clearing the bush”.
Meanwhile, efforts to get reaction from the Assistant Army Public Relations officer APR for 82 Division, Lt Col. Gambo Haladu, did not yield fruitful result as he did not take several calls put across to his mobile phone.
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