The Secretary to the Government of Anambra state Professor Solo Chukwulobelu is currently under fire as tricycle drivers in the state accuse him of being one of the masterminds backing illegal revenue collections imposed on them by touts and miscreants employing all manner of destructive means to forcefully extort money from them on daily basis, ANAMBRA PEOPLE reports.
The Keke drivers who thanked Governor Soludo in a letter dated 26th July, 2022 for his timely response to abolition of all manner of obnoxious levies enforced on Keke drivers through his new tax regime which took effect from 1st July, this year, also drew the attention of the governor to enemies within his government bent on ensuring that the new tax regime did not succeed.
The Keke drivers claimed that revenues which would have gone straight into government coffers were allegedly siphoned by a cabal of government officials during the last administration and that the SSG was not insulated from this cabal as government revenues amounting to millions of naira went into private pockets on a monthly basis.
Further investigations revealed that one Dr. Christian Madubuko a commissioner for transport under the Willie Obiano administration had used his office to ensure sanity in the transport sector as well as ensured that all manner of illegal revenue collections from Keke drivers and other transporters were stopped but because certain cabal who were feeding fat from the proceeds of illegal revenues existed with the government, Madubuko was overpowered and subsequently removed from the transport ministry and later he resigned his appointment but advised ex-governor Willie Obiano to be in charge of his government.
The Keke operators however stated unanimously that they were fully in agreement with the N15,000 monthly revenue from them as stipulated by Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo but issues they can no longer contend with are continued harassments, intimidations, extortions, confiscation and impoundment of Keke from Keke drivers by cultists and touts in the state allegedly working for some government officials. These were clearly stated in the letter they wrote to Governor Soludo with their letterhead named ” Anambra Keke Drivers Forum ” dated 26th July, 2022 and co-signed by comrade Osita Obi the coordinator and Ekpendu Augustine Ogadimma, secretary.
Part of the letter reads, ” We write to draw your attention to the harassments, intimidations, extortions, confiscation and impoundment of Keke from Keke drivers by cultists and agboros in the name of yearly ID card renewal, daily tickets of toan, toan logo and other obnoxious levies.
Sir these cultists and touts carry out these obnoxious acts with active connivance and collaboration of some of your senior officials particularly the SSG. Sir, we believe that membership of any union is voluntary and optional not compulsory. So toan has no power to forcing Keke drivers into its union.
We also want to draw your attention to the existence of the fifth columnists in your government frustrating your reformed tax policy and digital revenue collection.
Sir, Keke drivers thank you for your fair, lenient and just assessment of N15,000 per month tax for Keke drivers. Sir, Keke drivers want to state clearly here that if the harassments, intimidations, extortions and all these obnoxious levies by these cultists and agboros continues, Keke drivers will have no other option than to call for a statewide protest.”
Meanwhile when our correspondent went to the office of the SSG at the Government House Awka at about 12:55 pm on Friday 29th July, 2022, to obtain response from the SSG regarding allegations of his involvement in illegal revenue collections in the state, the officer of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps in his office one Dominic Ukoh told our correspondent that the SSG can not see him because he was in a meeting with some people that will not end anytime soon.
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