Enugu govt denies tax protest, says drivers sought parking space

The Enugu State Government has denied reports that commercial bus drivers and tricycle operators protested in the state over alleged excessive taxes and levies.

The government said the incident involved representatives of the transport operators seeking the allocation of designated parking spaces for their members at the new terminal.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Special Assistant to the Governor on Media, Hon. Onyekwere Nwobodo, described reports linking the incident to taxes or fuel price increases as false and malicious.

Nwobodo said the transport operators had approached the terminal management over the need to provide parking spaces for their members, following concerns about violations of the no-parking order around Ogbete Main Market.

According to him, the operators wanted the terminal management to allocate a designated space within the facility where their members could park.

He alleged that opposition elements had misrepresented the incident by presenting it as a protest against taxes and fuel price increases.

“It was while leaders of the two groups were interfacing with the management of the terminal inside the facility that opposition infiltrators hastily gave a convoluted account to reporters,” he said.

Nwobodo further alleged that the incident was being portrayed as evidence of discontent in the state for political purposes, given that political campaigns were ongoing.

He said the alleged misrepresentation made it necessary for residents seeking to express grievances through public processions to obtain security clearance to ensure orderly conduct.

The governor’s aide also commended the police for, according to him, preventing the incident from escalating into a breach of public peace.

He urged residents with genuine grievances over government policies to use appropriate channels to seek redress.

Nwobodo maintained that the incident had no connection with tax or fuel price increases, insisting that the transport operators’ concern was the allocation of parking space within the new terminal.

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