The National President of the Motorcycle Operators Union of Nigeria [MOUN], Comrade Julius Oghenevwegba Bobi has stated that the union would no longer tolerate a situation where their members are subjected to all manner of abuse by state governments and their agencies across the country.
According to a statement signed personally by the MOUN President and made available to the media on Sunday, he lamented that their members all over the country are being subjected to several inhuman treatments which is no longer acceptable to union.
The release read, “This is to draw your attention to the fact that the leadership of MOUN is very much aware of the travails and indisriminate treatment meted out to our members who ride motorcycles across the country by the government and her agencies, the effect of which as the National President, I have risen to the challenge to hold a dialogue with the government over these harassments and incessant seizure of motorcycles that are hitherto being destroyed, thereby rendering our members jobless despite being lawful citizens of the country, who pay their taxes regularly’
“The information reaching us this week gave an estimate of about 700 motorcycles that were seized by government agencies in the FCT, Abuja, aside other places in Nigeria. This is worrisome among other things motorcyclists are going through in Nigeria. If not harassments from the police as a result of extortions, it will be one thing or the other, a bane we can no longer tolerate”.
Comrade Bobi maintained that the situation has forced him to write to the current Minister of FCT, Barrister Nyesom Wike with a view to appealing to him to change his approach handling the issues relating to motorcycle riders in the Federal Capital Territory.
You may want to recall that the Motorcycle Operators Union recently received their Union certificate from the Registrar of the Trade Union, Mr Amos Faloni.
And according to the National President, the new development has now given them the temerity to carry out their operations in the way and manner that is regulated by the law.
“We now have the full backing to exist as an entity without the harassment and molestation by anybody hence within the ambit of the law. We are by this poised to achieve our mission and vision statement as our core values and what the association represents”, he said.
Source/Odiete/Ajasa
