RTEAN Accuses Governor Sanwo-Olu Of Disobeying Court Order, Extorting Members In Lagos

The Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) has accused the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu of flagrantly disobeying a court order.

The association also condemned the unlawful dissolution of the elected executive committee of the association.

The group also asked its members in various zones operating in the state not to comply with the directive asking the caretaker committee to take over the operation of the association in the state.

In a statement jointly signed by the association’s Deputy National President (Admin), Amb. Abubakar Muhammad Bishara and National General Secretary, Comrade Yusuf Adeniyi on Wednesday in Abuja, the group said the state government does not have the power to issue the directive, especially when the National Industrial Court had ordered the parties involved to maintain status quo ante bellum.

RTEAN said the action of the caretaker committee to replace the tickets at the parks is a clear violation of the order of the court.

The statement read in part, “It can be seen, therefore, from the unlawful directive given by the Caretaker Committee as well as the forceful sale of tickets to members of RTEAN, that the purported dissolution of the Elected Executive Committee of RTEAN Lagos State Branch and the appointment of the so-called Caretaker Committee was just a smoke screen to be used to extort money from members, Chapels and Zones of RTEAN in Lagos State.

“It should also be noted that the suit came up on the 7th November, 2022 before the National Industrial Court sitting in Lagos and the Honourable Court ordered all the parties to maintain the status quo ante bellum pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice and the substantive Suit which was adjourned to the 23rd of November, 2022 for hearing.

“The action of the Caretaker Committee is a clear disrespect to the said Court Order made by the National Industrial Court as same is in contempt of the aforesaid Order made by the Court.

“We are therefore calling on all Chapels and Zones of RTEAN operating in Lagos State not to comply with the unlawful and/or illegal directive of the so-called Caretaker Committee as they do not have the powers to issue the said directive especially when the National Industrial Court had ordered the maintenance of the status quo ante bellum.

“The precipitate action in the form of the directive to pay the amount stated above by the so-called Caretaker Committee being in contempt of the valid order made by the Court, will at the appropriate time be challenged in Court as no one is above the law”

The statement noted that Lagos State Government not only purported to dissolve the elected executive committee of the association but also to extort its members of large amounts of money.

“The Lagos State Government has also replaced all the tickets of RTEAN in their parks and has printed new ones in various categories ranging from N1,000 to N2,000 in the name of ‘Lagos State Park Administration’ and the ‘Lagos State Care-taker Committee’ and are using the so-called Caretaker Committee to forcefully sell the said tickets to members of RTEAN in Lagos State,” the statement added.