Lagos Commercial Drivers Protest Against Takeover Of Transport Routes By Seyi Tinubu’s New Buses, Block VGC Road
The protest, which brought traffic to a standstill, erupted after aggrieved drivers claimed they were instructed to stop operating their korope buses entirely and instead take up a new set of vehicles allegedly introduced by interests connected to the president’s son.
Commercial drivers operating small buses popularly known as “korope” on Wednesday staged a protest along the Ajiwe axis en route to Victoria Garden City (VGC), Ajah, Lagos State, following allegations that they were being forced to abandon their existing vehicles and purchase newly acquired buses allegedly linked to Seyi Tinubu, son of President Bola Tinubu.
The protest, which brought traffic to a standstill, erupted after aggrieved drivers claimed they were instructed to stop operating their korope buses entirely and instead take up a new set of vehicles allegedly introduced by interests connected to the president’s son.
Speaking to SaharaReporters during the protest, affected drivers and operators described the development as unfair and oppressive, especially for those who had already acquired their buses through long-term payment plans and were close to completing, or had completely completed, payment.
According to several eyewitnesses, the drivers were not merely restricted from plying certain routes or relocating to other areas, but were allegedly prevented from working altogether.
“They didn’t stop us from moving from one place to another,” one eyewitness told SaharaReporters. “They stopped us from working entirely. They told us we should not use korope again.”
The affected operators said they were explicitly instructed to stop using their existing korope buses because another set of similar vehicles had been introduced into the area.
Although no official statement named the individual behind the newly introduced buses, multiple drivers alleged that the vehicles were brought in by Seyi Tinubu.
“They didn’t mention names openly,” one driver said. “But everybody here knows that the buses are allegedly from Seyi Tinubu. That’s what we were told.”
Following this development, the drivers said they were being forced to abandon the buses they had already acquired and instead collect the newly introduced korope vehicles under new purchase terms allegedly linked to Seyi Tinubu.
The drivers insisted that the directive was unreasonable, noting that many of them had invested heavily in their existing buses and had structured their livelihoods around them.
“This is not fair to us at all,” one operator said. “Some of us have almost finished paying for our buses. Some of us have fully paid. We are already making sales and operating independently.”
one operator, who spoke emotionally, said he had personally collected a bus under a hire-purchase agreement and had completely paid off the cost before the latest directive.
“I finished paying for my bus,” he said. “So why should anybody now come and tell me to leave my own vehicle and start buying another one?”
He questioned the logic behind the move, describing it as exploitative and unjust.
“Who does that?” he asked angrily. “There’s no way anyone would agree to that. You can’t tell someone who has finished paying for his bus to abandon it and start afresh.”
According to him, the frustration and sense of injustice triggered the protest and led to the decision to block the road.
As of Wednesday morning, movement along the Ajiwe–VGC corridor was severely disrupted.
An eyewitness who travelled through the area said the entire route was effectively under lockdown as protesters occupied the road, bringing both commercial and private activities to a standstill.
“I travelled from Ajiwe to VGC this morning,” the witness said. “The whole place was blocked. Nothing was moving. The protest completely shut down the route.”
At the time of filing this report, there has been no official response from the Lagos State authorities or from Seyi Tinubu regarding the allegations, as tensions remained high among the protesting drivers who vowed not to vacate the area until their concerns were addressed.
