Motorists plying Kaduna-Zaria and Kaduna-Plateau highways were
yesterday subjected to untold hardship following a protest by drivers of
articulated vehicles over the alleged shooting of their colleagues by a
soldier.
The soldier, as alleged, shot a trailer driver, Abba Saminu, in his
right leg for refusing to offer him N500 bribe at the popular tour gate
along Kaduna-Zaria road at about 10pm on Sunday.
When the news of the shooting spread, his fellow drivers protested by blocking the highway with their vehicles for more than 24 hours, thereby denying other road users access to the road.
The protest lasted from 10pm on Sunday evening and ended at about 3pm yesterday, causing severe hardship to thousands of motorists and passengers trapped in the gridlock.
Meanwhile, the victim was rushed to Saint Gerald’s Hospital, Kaduna, by good Nigerians whot found him in a pool of his blood.
The victim spoke to our correspondent in his hospital bed: “ We were on our way back to Kaduna with Irish potatoes in the vehicle when we came across a checkpoint mounted by the soldiers around 10pm on Sunday close to Mararraba Jos.
“They ordered us to park; as I was about parking by the roadside, one of the soldiers demanded N500 from me. I told him I can only afford N100 . So he shouted at us and ordered us out of the vehicle,” he said.
According to Abba, immediately he alighted from the vehicle another soldier slapped him.
“When I turned to run I heard a gunshot so I fell down. They entered their vehicle and zoomed off. It was some people that later came to rush me to hospital,” he said.
Abba’s employer, Alhaji Ibrahim, who was at the hospital appealed to military authorities and government to bring an end to harassment of drivers by soldiers on the high ays.
When the news of the shooting spread, his fellow drivers protested by blocking the highway with their vehicles for more than 24 hours, thereby denying other road users access to the road.
The protest lasted from 10pm on Sunday evening and ended at about 3pm yesterday, causing severe hardship to thousands of motorists and passengers trapped in the gridlock.
Meanwhile, the victim was rushed to Saint Gerald’s Hospital, Kaduna, by good Nigerians whot found him in a pool of his blood.
The victim spoke to our correspondent in his hospital bed: “ We were on our way back to Kaduna with Irish potatoes in the vehicle when we came across a checkpoint mounted by the soldiers around 10pm on Sunday close to Mararraba Jos.
“They ordered us to park; as I was about parking by the roadside, one of the soldiers demanded N500 from me. I told him I can only afford N100 . So he shouted at us and ordered us out of the vehicle,” he said.
According to Abba, immediately he alighted from the vehicle another soldier slapped him.
“When I turned to run I heard a gunshot so I fell down. They entered their vehicle and zoomed off. It was some people that later came to rush me to hospital,” he said.
Abba’s employer, Alhaji Ibrahim, who was at the hospital appealed to military authorities and government to bring an end to harassment of drivers by soldiers on the high ays.
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