Anambra State Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) has threatened to shut down services if the state government refuses to reverse the heavy taxation on transporters.
RTEAN issued this warning following a joint meeting held on Thursday in Awka, the Anambra State capital.
The State Chairman of RTEAN, who is also the Deputy State Chairman of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Ambassador Chinedu Nwabueze, addressed journalists in Awka on Thursday,, stating that they have sent several letters to the government on the matter without any response.
According to Nwabueze, the Anambra State government, through the State Board of Internal Revenue, has been heavily taxing transporters and intimidating drivers.
“The state government has been double taxing us, harassing our members, and intimidating our drivers, which has, on several occasions, led to the death of our members,” he stated.
He criticized the government’s policies on the sub-transport sector, arguing that they have been implemented without consideration of key stakeholders.
Nwabueze noted that the Anambra State Revenue Service has repeatedly awarded contracts to individuals and companies for the collection of levies and taxes on federal roads in the state, describing these collections as illegal and unconstitutional.
He revealed that an average tricycle driver in the state pays about N96,000 in taxes annually, while those operating in major markets pay less than N30,000 each year.
He argued that the taxation on tricycle drivers, which is meant to alleviate poverty, is excessively high and unacceptable.
“We shall resist the government agents collecting levies and taxes on federal highways from our members,” he said.
He said that the president has given orders stopping collections of levies and taxes on some items, like foodstuff and others, but in Anambra, they still collect those illegal fees.
He also appealed to the president and inspector general of police to empower them to enforce the order on federal highways.
He also appealed to the state government to convene a stakeholders’ roundtable within the next two weeks to discuss the issue, warning that if not addressed, they would be left with no choice but to shut down services or seek legitimate actions.
According to him, the union is not fighting the state government’s policies but rather opposing the detrimental policies that undermine the government’s good intentions.
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