by Ranti Joseph
Infuriated drivers at Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti on Friday have attacked an operative of the Directorate of State Service for allegedly interfering in their protest.
It was gathered that trouble started following a disagreement between the students of EKSU and Akoto drivers designated vehicles plying the institution over the number of passengers on a seat. The students were said to have protested that the drivers reduce the number of passengers on a seat to its normal three from four that they had started carrying. The disagreement escalated into a free-for-all and caused traffic gridlock from Bawa Area of Ado Ekiti.
An eyewitness said some of the drivers carried clubs, cudgels and sharp objects to scare passengers and motorists plying the road. They also forced motorists to discharge students of the institution. The situation took a more violent trend as the DSS official was attacked, his clothes were torn to shreds and in the process sustained bruises, cuts and blood stains on his body.
“I was punched, clubbed, stoned by the drivers and if not for the timely intervention of another colleague who fortunately came to the scene and shot in the air severally to scare the mob away, it would have been worse,” he said.
Officials of the DSS, Policemen and some top officials of the EKSU later visited the scene to restore peace in the area. Meanwhile, the students have vowed to ensure that the drivers comply with the regulation of only three people on a seat.
