Kunle ADELABU & Segun ADESUYI
Commuters of the Bus Rapid Response (BRT) in Ikorodu, who have been groaning under poor condition of services provided by the operator of the BRT franchise in Lagos State, Primero Transport Services Limited, on Saturday, June 30, 2018, stormed the palace of the traditional ruler of Ikorodu, His Royal Majesty, Oba Kabir Adewale Shotobi, the Ayangbure of Ikorodu, to protest against the poor services.
The protesters, under the aegis of the Concerned Primero Commuters, in their protest letter submitted to the royal father, stated that their protest was based on the agonizing pains and struggles in boarding biwuses, insults being experienced in hands of the Primero staff members and other unethical behaviours often experienced at all of the transport company’s terminals in Ikorodu.
Mr Adeyemi Sarumi, while speaking on behalf of the Concerned Primero Commuters said:
“The purpose of visiting the Ayangbure palace is that we are having some challenges with Primero and that is why we have come here. Our requests are well itemized in our protest letter and we want better services from the transport company”,he pleaded with Oba Shotobi.
“We formed this association based on the fact that we meet at the BRT terminal almost every day and we do interact. Most of us know one another very well and that is how we now came together to form the association. I am very happy with Ayangbure’s decision and I believe with that, there will be a change”.
The protesters enjoined Oba Shotobi to intervene in the matter before it gets out of hands.
Mr Segun Anakoro, the General Manager of Primero Transport Services, in his reaction at the palace, described the development as a dialoguing process meant to make them improve on their services to the public.
“The complaints by the concerned commuters is an opportunity for us to improve on our services. You can not be a service company and you don’t take your customers seriously, very soon, you will be out of business”, Mr Anakoro stated.
“It was not really a complaint session but a dialogue process and we have taken note because it was organized and we thank the Ayangburen of Ikorodu for his royal intervention.
“All their issues were tabularized and we have noted them, those issues are not new to us, we know them and we are already dealing with them. The Kabiesi has given us the grace till September to go and sort things out for the betterment of the people of Ikorodu.
“We love Ikorodu people because if they are not patronizing us, how are we going to survive and we appreciate that and we have also agreed that this will be a continuous process. We will always meet to discuss and rob minds together to see how we can improve.
“We want to assure the commuters that we are always there for them, we will continue to listen to them and we promise they will see some changes soon”.
Oba Shotobi, while addressing the protesters, thanked them for bringing their concern to him and commended their civil approach to the issue.
He assured the Concerned Commuters of his intervention in ensuring that the service provider improved on their services to the people.
The royal father also enjoined the representatives of the Primero to see to the complaints of their customers and adjust in good time where necessary.
The Concerned Primero Commuters had listed many areas of concerns in their protest letter to the kabiyesi.
They complained that, “Departure and arrival of the Primero buses at terminals must be addressed because commuters face more than two to three hours waiting to board buses at terminals.
“Entrances of Primero terminals in Ikorodu have been turned to parking lots by the okada riders, hence causes delay when the buses are coming into the terminal and also poses potential accident waiting to happen. It would be greatly appreciated if the okadas can be removed”,they pleaded.
“The toilets are extremely dirty and unkempt. We really wonder why we are being charged so much and we cannot see what the money is being used for. The flushing buttons are missing, the doors are without locks which imply that there is no privacy and most of the time, water does not run in the toilets. We beg you to reduce the charge to N20 to urinate and N50 to stool”.
The commuters also complained bitterly about the attitudes of the ticketers.
“The ticketers are unbelievably rude and not well trained for the job after all. They need to understand that their salaries are being paid from the passengers patronage. The women among them are the worst and not just in Ikorodu alone, but all over the terminals across the State. Please, address this matter, they are not doing you any good. They need o be re-oriented to be able to know that commuters are paying for their services”.
They also appealed that, ” School children should be given priority inside any Primero buses. They are to be treated like a student i.e. a single ticket should be allowed to cover four of them and they should be on standing.
At the end of the parley, it was resolved that a three month period should be given to Primero Transport Service to improve on their services to the commuters.
It was also agreed that another meeting should be convened by the royal father to review measures taken by the service company in improving its services to the Ikorodu people.
