In the ancient city of Ile-Ife commercial activities are ongoing inspite of the call by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) for organised protests against subsidy removal.
All the markets monitored, like Itakogun, Ojafe, Oja-Tuntun, Fowobaje, among others were opened, bankers were attending to customer, commercial buses, tricycles and motorcyclists were busy doing their businesses.
The General Secretary Tricycle Riders Association, Ondo Road, Ile-Ife, Mr Stephen Oyekunle, said they supported the government on removal of fuel subsidy, but the President should have provided relief for citizens before the removal.
Oyekunle advised that government ought to have done it gradually, adding that “a journey of a thousand miles starts with a step”.
He commended the President for boldly delivering the country from a set of selfish people, who were spending the subsidy at the detriment of others.
The General Secretary also urged the President to ensure that the money saved from subsidy removal should be channeled to refineries, education, health, agriculture among other benefits.
“If Nigeria can operate its own refineries, life would be easier, we used to buy N1,500 fuel per day before, but now we spend over N7,000.
“Most of our drivers have returned the vehicles to the owners, because they can’t meet up with delivery fees, while some of the owners had also parked theirs, ” he explained.
Oyekunle appealed to the Federal Government to reduce the price of fuel to a bearable minimum price.
He, however, said that “As our colleagues in Lagos State are not supporting the protest by the unions, so also we are not supporting it, mostly, it has no benefit for masses, but workers alone.
“On several occasions, the union leaders had protested on issues like this, at the end of the day, their salaries were increased and price of petrol and other goods were not reduced,” he expressed.
Oyekunle called on government to open the border for goods to come in, adding that previously, a tricycle was sold for N800,000, but it’s now sold for N1.8 million.
He appealed to the President to assist them by giving tricycles to their unions to pay in installments as former President Goodluck Jonathan did for them then.
However, the Chairman, Okada Riders Association, by Stanbic Bank, Lagere, Mr Nurudeen AJadi, said that they were not in support of the subsidy removal, because it makes life difficult for them.
Ajadi added that they were in full support of the NLC protest, stressing that for more effect, everybody ought to have joined the protest.
He called on government to reduce the price of fuel and make available the palliatives promised to Nigerians.
All efforts to speak with the Iyalojas, Babalojas of the major markets as well as bank managers was unsuccessful.
