On Wednesday, commercial tricycle drivers in Warri took to the streets, marching to the Delta State Board of Internal Revenue (DBIR) headquarters. They voiced grievances over what they described as persistent harassment, extortion, and unlawful arrests by police officers.
The demonstrators blocked a lane of the main highway leading to the airport, singing solidarity songs as they carried placards. Their signs read messages such as: “License Office, tell us why our plate numbers are not registered in your system. Police are harassing us” and “Government provide us with jobs please. Police leave Keke riders alone”.
According to the protesters, police in Warri and surrounding areas have been routinely arresting them illegally and demanding daily payments of ten thousand naira (N10,000). They warned that if government agencies do not intervene amicably, the situation could escalate into a major crisis.
One operator from the Eyekpimi family of Okere-Urhobo community stated that if authorities are searching for “illegal officers” involved in number plate fraud, they should target the DBIR office rather than arresting innocent riders on the road. He emphasized that the riders are only trying to support themselves and their families.
He also appealed to Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, noting that the governor might be unaware of the situation in Warri. “Governor, the police in Warri are harassing us. Area Command, Ekpan, ‘B’ Division, and all of them,” he said.
Eyekpimi argued that their number plates were legitimately registered by the licensing office, questioning: “Do we have machines to print illegal plate numbers? If Police are looking for illegal officers who make number plates, they should go and arrest them at the licensing office. Not on the road to arrest us.”
The protesters vowed to continue until illegal arrests and the daily N10,000 extortion by police in Warri and its environs stop.
Another tricycle operator, Jeffery Awhe Akioja, echoed similar concerns. He mentioned other illegal “development fees” that police collect on the road daily. He recalled previous challenges: “They came with baskets and waste bins, we overcame that. They came with tarpaulins and said we should not paint our Keke black, we overcame that too.”
Akioja explained that they purchased their tricycles on hire purchase, costing between 8 to 9 million naira, and are struggling to make payments due to the lack of jobs in the country and state. He added: “If they seize your Keke, you pay N10,000. If you don’t have it, they arrest you and take you to the station. Yet it is the State Government that registers plate numbers for us, not ourselves.”
He stressed that the protest was directed at the licensing office due to police harassment, illegal arrests, and extortion. “B Division won’t let us rest. Mopol base, Ogunu, Enerhen—all of them. Enough is enough.”
Wisdom Omoteh, another rider, recounted his own experience: police from Enerhen Division stopped him, checked his documents—which were correct—but still claimed the number plate lacked paperwork. He demanded that authorities go after the licensing office instead of innocent riders.