Daily Independent (Lagos)
Tunde Opeseitan
14 October 2008
Lagos — Thousands of Lagosians were on Monday stranded as officials of the Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) embarked on a warning strike to press home their demand for better remuneration and conditions of service.
The staff members, who staged a peaceful protest at the Toll Gate office of LAGBUS, said three BRT drivers recently died on the job due to overwhelming stress and lack of medical attention.
Mukaila Adegboye, who spoke with Daily Independent on behalf of the workers, lamented the attitude of LAGBUS management to workers' welfare, adding that the situation was nothing but "slavery".
While protesting the "injustice meted to them, the workers called for the unconditional release of one of them, Ibraheem Alausa, who is now in Kirikiri Prison.
They also called for immediate resignation of the Executive Director of LAGBUS, Yemi Odubela, "over his inability to adequately manage the transport company".
They alleged that Odubela was sectional and not mindful of the plight of drivers and ticket officers who daily gather millions into the coffers of the management.
According to Adegboye, "The way the management is treating us is absolutely unfair and nothing but slavery. Can you imagine that we work for 16 hours daily, from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. everyday without medical care or allowance and overtime? Since our employment 20 months ago, no bus captain has been allowed to go on annual leave, and no salary increment. We say capital NO to all these," Adegboye said.
In a swift reaction, however, Managing Director of LAGBUS, Tunde Disu, said the management was already putting measures in place to address all the issues raised by the workers.
He said about a month ago the management organised a medical test for some of the workers, adding that the remaining staff would soon be subjected to medical test.
He expressed hope that the workers' demand would be met, adding: "I hope we will commence full and normal operation tomorrow (today)."
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 Daily Independent. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
