From Tony Osauzo, Benin
Protesters protesting insecurity on the Benin-Auchi-Lokoja road, yesterday, blocked the road, forcing long vehicular queues on both sides of the road.
The action, the second in less than a month, left commuters stranded for several hours.
It was learnt that yesterday protest by members of Urokuosa community in Uhunmwode Local Government Area, was triggered after suspected Fulani herdsmen attacked a Sienna bus, injuring many passengers on Wednesday.
The protesters while reeling out the daily abductions of travellers on the road, said a driver of one the popular transport companies was shot dead last week.
They threatened not to vacate the road until Governor Godwin Obaseki or his Deputy, Philip Shaibu show up.
Meanwhile, Governor Obaseki, has reassured that the government will sustain collaboration with the military, the Nigeria Police Force, members of the Edo State Community Vigilante Security Network and other security outfits in the state to tackle insecurity on the road.
He gave the assurance when the leadership of the Student Union Government (SUG) of Ambrose Alli University paid him a courtesy visit at the Government House in Benin City.
Represented by his Chief of Staff, Hon. Osaigbovo Iyoha, Obaseki reaffirmed the government’s commitment to the security of lives and property of Edo citizens, saying that measures had been put in place to enhance security in the axis and other parts of the state.
“The issue of insecurity on the highway is not peculiar to Edo State alone. We all know about the insecurity going on in the country but the Edo State Government has been proactive by doing a lot of work in collaborating with the local vigilante and other security agencies to boost security along that Uhunmwode and Obagie axis. In the not too distant future, it will be a thing of the past”, he said.