Council poll:Truckers, commuters trapped as FCT enforces no movement

By Abubakar Yunusa

Travellers were stranded on Saturday along the Abuja–Keffi Expressway following the shutdown of major entry points into the Federal Capital Territory for the area council elections.

Our correspondent observed that the usually busy Nyanya checkpoint, which links Abuja to Mararaba in Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, was barricaded by soldiers and police in a joint operation.

Long queues of trucks conveying goods from Jos, Benue, Nasarawa and Taraba states to other parts of the country were forced to stop, leaving drivers and passengers stranded for hours.

Security operatives were also stationed at the Karu bridge, where vehicular movement was halted, while commuters were turned back from accessing the FCT.

The stretch from Abacha Barracks through Kugbo, notorious for heavy traffic, was unusually quiet, with residents describing the area as “calm like a graveyard”.

The disruption followed a directive by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, who had earlier declared Friday a work-free day and announced a restriction on human and vehicular movement from 8pm on Friday to 6pm on Saturday.

A truck driver, Ismael, said the blockade was unnecessary.

“This is a federal road, not limited to the FCT. I’m coming from Jos to Kaduna and my time has been wasted,” he said.

Another commuter, Benjamin Audu, lamented rising transport costs and loss of income.

“There is no vehicle, and even if there is, the price is outrageous. An okada rider demanded ₦1,500 to AYA instead of ₦500,” he said.

Reacting to the curfew on Channels Television’s Politics Today yesterday, the senator representing the FCT, Ireti Kingibe, criticised the decision, describing it as “authoritarian, ill-considered, and unacceptable in a democratic society”.

She said the restriction amounted to an affront to residents’ constitutional rights, insisting that sweeping limits on movement must be justified, transparent and subjected to scrutiny.