The Nigeria Democratic Congress governorship candidate in Lagos State, Funso Doherty, has accused successive governments of lacking the political will to address the activities of transport operators popularly known as agberos in the state.
Agberos is a colloquial term for touts, particularly individuals who collect money from commercial bus drivers and transport operators at motor parks, bus stops and along roads, often claiming to act on behalf of transport unions or park authorities.
Doherty said vested interests in the existing public transportation system had made it difficult for the government to reform the sector, despite the challenges posed by the chaotic operation of commercial buses.
He spoke on Sunday during the Lagos Governorship Debate organsided by the Nigeria Debate Consortium, a coalition of five media organisations such as The PUNCH, Channels Television, TVC News, TheCable and Vanguard Newspaper.
He also questioned why the state had yet to modernise its public transportation system despite having thousands of rickety buses operating on its roads.
“Our public transportation system is not modernised. Thousands of rickety buses are moving around. We must ask ourselves: Are these what our people deserve? Why has it taken so long to modernise public transportation?” he asked.
The NDC candidate argued that the situation was not accidental, alleging that some interests benefited from the existing arrangement.