Taxi drivers in Akure, capital of Ondo state, Tuesday staged a protest over hike in price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and proposed a hike in the price of transportation from N100 to N200 per drop.
The drivers downed tools by not picking passengers and blocking major roads. Commuters were stranded, and workers, school children and others trekked long distances to get to their various destinations.
Government offices and schools were deserted and workers and pupils that arrive their offices and schools were few.
Some drivers who spoke on condition of anonymity, blamed the current hardship on the federal government’s sudden pronouncement, they said marketers took the opportunity to hike price of petroleum across the country.
A driver, who preferred to be addressed as Dada stated that the removal of the subsidy by the federal government should have been a soft-landing affairs in which all parties were informed while mechanism would also be in place at ensuring that the masses are protected from the hardship the situation might create.
