A Peoples Democratic Party chieftain in Lagos State, Taofik Gani, has urged the Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration not to hand over the collection of transport levy to Alpha Beta Consulting.
Gani, in a chat with The PUNCH on Wednesday, backed the suspension of the activities of the National Union of Road Transport Workers in the state by the Sanwo-Olu administration.
The former PDP spokesman in Lagos said the All Progressives Congress government should use the opportunity of the crisis rocking the NURTW in the state to reform the commercial transport sector in Lagos.
Gani said, “We support the reform. This attempt must however not be for Alpha Beta to make undue gains again.
“This governor will write his name in gold if he can curb the excesses of NURTW in Lagos, especially this present leadership in the state. Facts abound of NURTW’s intra-fightings and destructions which most times endanger innocent motorists.”
Alpha Beta, which was receiving 10 per cent of the tax collected on behalf of the state, is reportedly controlled by APC chieftain and ex-governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, according to a former Managing Director of the company, Oladapo Apara.
Apara had said due to the technological innovation that was deployed by him, the Internally Generated Revenue of the state grew from N10bn per annum in 2002 to N300bn in 2019.
He had also said the company got over N150 billion as 10 per cent commission for “computing, tracking and reconciling” Lagos State’s IGR since the year 2000.
Back story
NURTW’s national body of the union last Thursday had suspended its Lagos State Chairman, Musiliu Akinsanya, aka MC Oluomo, following weeks of protracted conflict and leadership tussle.
Akinsanya subsequently announced his withdrawal and that of lieutenants from the union. He also directed them to stop issuing NURTW tickets at parks and garages.
He further asked Sanwo-Olu to take over the running of all parks and garages in the state till peace returned to the union.
Sanwo-Olu later suspended the activities of NURTW from all parks and garages with immediate effect and set up a committee to immediately take control of the parks and garages.
The PUNCH had reported that the Lagos State Council Group of Elders of NURTW, in a letter on Monday, asked the national body of the union in Abuja to withdraw the suspension of Akinsanya within seven days.
According to a 2021 report by the International Centre for Investigative Report, the Lagos chapter of NURTW generates about N123.08bn annually, which could service the annual budget of Nasarawa, Niger, and Yobe states put together.
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