Idowu Idris
The National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) clashed violently with another NURTW faction in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city, on Tuesday. Sapele Crescent is located off Ladoke Akintola Boulevard in Garki II.
The incident has sparked worries about public safety and the need for immediate response to avert more bloodshed.
During the conflict, there were reports of gunshots, which added to the anxiety in the region. At the time of reporting this report, the exact number of victims, if any, could not be established.
According to eyewitness accounts, the altercation erupted as supporters of NURTW President Prof. Tajudeen Ibikunle Baruwa marched towards the union’s national offices, which is currently controlled by the Lagos Park Management Committee led by Tajudeen Badru Agbede.
“As you may be aware, members of the Lagos Park Management Committee, led by Agbede, forcefully occupied the Secretariat a few weeks ago, displacing the president and other executives” said a source
“Therefore, supporters of the current president mobilized themselves in an effort to forcibly remove Agbede and his group.
“However, they were met by a police blockade which resulted in a violent confrontation. Shots were fired, intensifying the gravity of the crisis,” an eyewitness disclosed to Abuja City Journal
Baruwa had attempted to address the matter with the help of the police and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), but had been unsuccessful.
“We shall henceforth not hesitate to defend our mandate with the last drop of our blood,” Baruwa had earlier vowed, accusing former NURTW leaders of illegally occupying the National Secretariat of the union.
He accused the union’s previous president, Alhaji Najeem Usman Yasin, and Agbede, the former National Vice President, of holding illegal meetings with chosen past union leaders.
