The African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Enugu State has accused the state government of coercing commercial tricycle operators, popularly known as keke riders, into endorsing President Bola Tinubu and Governor Peter Mbah for re-election ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The opposition party also described the relief package recently announced by Governor Mbah for the operators as a “Greek gift,” alleging that the gesture was politically motivated and would be withdrawn once the governor secured a second term in office.
The controversy followed an endorsement event tagged “One Million March,” organised by the Tricycle Riders Association of Nigeria in Enugu on Saturday, where the operators declared support for Tinubu and Mbah, both members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The riders reportedly cited improvements in security, road infrastructure and the provision of social amenities in the state as reasons for endorsing the two political leaders ahead of the 2027 elections.
However, reacting in a statement issued on Sunday, the Enugu State chapter of the ADC alleged that the endorsement did not reflect the genuine wishes of the tricycle operators, claiming that the state government used their union leaders to compel them to attend the rally.
According to the party, credible information available to it indicated that struggling keke riders were forced to attend the event at Michael Okpara Square, Enugu, where the endorsement took place.
The ADC insisted that political support in a democracy must be freely given rather than obtained through coercion, describing the endorsement as a “phony” exercise that should be disregarded by members of the public.
The party argued that the economic realities confronting commercial tricycle operators made it difficult to believe that they would willingly support the continuation of a government it accused of imposing restrictive operating hours and heavy financial burdens on daily income earners through what it described as ruthless and inhumane taxation policies.
It particularly criticised the e-ticketing system introduced by the Mbah administration, alleging that the levy had placed considerable pressure on tricycle operators already struggling with rising fuel prices and the broader economic consequences of the Federal Government’s removal of fuel subsidy and unification of the naira exchange rate.
Quoting the statement, the party said the daily e-ticket levy of N500 imposed on operators amounted to N182,500 annually for each rider.
“While the okada riders in Enugu were struggling to survive with their meagre income under the harsh economic condition, the Mbah government imposed daily N500 e-ticket levy on them, amounting to N182,500 annually,” the statement said.
The ADC further claimed that each operator had paid no less than N600,000 in e-ticket levies over the preceding three and a half years, arguing that the money could otherwise have helped riders maintain their tricycles, feed their families, pay their children’s school fees and meet other essential needs.
The party also questioned the governor’s decision to extend the permitted operating hours for tricycle riders from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m., arguing that the move raised questions about the security situation in the state.
According to the statement issued by the Enugu ADC Secretary, A.C. Ude, the extension suggested that the governor had failed to adequately secure the state.
Ude challenged Mbah to withdraw from the 2027 governorship race if he could not guarantee security, urging him to give way to the ADC’s governorship candidate, Ocho Obodoeze, whom the party described as having the capacity and knowledge required to secure the state.
The opposition party also rejected the governor’s relief package for tricycle operators, arguing that the measures were insufficient to compensate them for the financial losses they allegedly suffered under the administration.
It maintained that the proposed scrapping of the e-ticket levy was neither intended to ease the operators’ economic hardship nor address their accumulated losses over the past three and a half years, but was instead a political manoeuvre designed to win their support ahead of the elections.
The ADC alleged that heavy taxation had prevented many operators from expanding their businesses by acquiring additional tricycles, while some reportedly struggled to pay hospital bills, house rents and their children’s school fees.
The party further claimed that some families had been forced to withdraw their children from school, while others had abandoned their homes and returned to their villages because they could no longer cope with the financial pressure.
“Majority of them could not add more tricycles to add to their fleet because of heavy taxation. Some could not pay hospital bills and school fees for their children. Their children dropped out of school. Some could not pay house rents, and returned to the village with their families. What plan did the Governor design to address the losses they incurred?” the party asked.
The ADC urged the tricycle operators not to be swayed by what it described as Mbah’s politically motivated gesture, calling on them to vote out the APC-led governments at both the state and federal levels in 2027.
The party said the elections presented an opportunity for the operators and other residents to reject what it described as insensitive leadership and the economic hardship associated with the policies of the ruling parties.
It also urged the operators to support Obodoeze, claiming that the ADC candidate had pledged to implement a 50 per cent tax reduction for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) throughout his proposed four-year tenure.
According to the party, the pledge would form part of Obodoeze’s economic agenda if elected governor under a single-term arrangement.
The allegations of coercion, the criticism of the relief package and the claims about the economic impact of the e-ticket levy were contained in the ADC’s statement. No response from the Enugu State Government or the Tricycle Riders Association of Nigeria addressing the allegations was included in the information available for this report.