Commercial drivers have joined the list of those who are not happy with the emergency rule imposed on Rivers State by President Bola Tinubu, as they maintained that since the emergency rule was declared, their transportation business has been negatively affected.
Citing section 305 of the 1999 constitution as amended, the president suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara and replaced him with Retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas to pilot the affairs of the state as a sole administrator.
In an interview with our correspondent, the state President of the Urban Drivers Welfare Association, Comrade Lekia Isaac, said commercial drivers now find it difficult to remit finances to owners of vehicles, adding that the emergency rule had created low turn out of passengers.
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He said: “We have been lamenting right from the day the state of emergency was declared till today because it has led to a low turnout of passengers.
“Commercial drivers these days now find it difficult to make financial returns to the owners of vehicles. It has been very tough for us.
“The transportation business in the state is stagnant. Nothing is moving and it is affecting us seriously. We are only buying fuel and not making any money from transport business.
“We are praying for Governor Fubara to be quickly reinstated because his suspension is not doing anybody any good. The state is now in a state of dormancy where nothing is moving.”
Within his few weeks in office as sole administrator, Ibas had suspended all government appointees of Fubara, inspected some projects embarked upon by the suspended governor, and ordered all paramilitary agencies to intensify patrols in the state.
However, many residents of the state had viewed the actions of the sole administrator as unacceptable, accusing him of acting beyond the peace-building reason upon which he was appointed by the federal government to rule the state.
