Commercial tricycle operators in Awka, the Anambra State capital have protested high taxation impose on members by the state government.
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The tricyclists claimed that the high taxes imposed by the government were too much for them to bear as they blocked the Enugu-Onitsha expressway on Thursday at Aroma Junction.
Some tricycycle operators claimed that they were taxed up to N15,000 in the Keke union, in addition to other levies.
Meanwhile, the Anambra State government has denied involvement in the alleged plans to subject tricycle riders to higher taxes.
Officials from the government who spoke with journalists in Awka clarified that the protest might not be directed at Governor Soludo because the Governor has simplified the payment of tricyclists.
They added that instead of the numerous illegal payments the tricycle operators make each day, which can even exceed N1,000 per day, the governor has declared that they can only pay N600, which will not be a daily payment but a monthly payment.
A human rights activist, Mr. Osita Obi, also stated that the payment that sparked the protest is being championed by the Keke riders’ union, who are working to compel their members to pay them some money.
