Emission Control Scheme: Motorists Lament, Accuse Osun Govt Of Extortion, Violation Of Traffic Rules

…As Govt Debunks Alleged Extortion

By Nafisat Arogundade, Osogbo

Scores of motorists in Osun State have condemned the activities of some individuals who claimed to be working for Osun State government under a purported intervention known as ” Emission Control Scheme “.

Officials of the scheme have been accused of obstructing traffic flow, harassment of road users and extortion among other allegations.

Speaking with newsmen on Monday at one of their locations around capital junction, along Osogbo -Iwo road, the head of the team, who simply identified himself as Dimeji disclosed that they were employees of a private company, Jay Jay Ventures, which is a consultancy firm working for the Ministry of Environment to check the rate of emission of vehicles on the roads for a fees, in order to control level of harmful gases released into the atmosphere.

Meanwhile, some of the motorists who spoke with CityMirrorNews berated the Osun State government for allowing private individuals without requisite training and education about traffic law and regulations to be on the road and cause chaos.

A motorist, Mr Bamidele Tella said the manner in which the individuals obstruct traffic is horrible and uncivilised, apart from #1000 naira they are collecting from them, saying this action is capable of causing serious auto crash and crisis if not quickly addressed.

“This development is disheartening, how could you allow some hoodlums to be manning the road and exploiting innocent road users under the guise of checking the rate of emission on vehicles.

“These are people without education and training, they will just enter the road and forcefully stop moving vehicles like street urchins. This is very disturbing and embarrassing.

“If government wants to regulate the rate of emission of dangerous gases in the state, this is not a civilised way to go about it, this is simply a cunning way of enriching some individuals at the expense of the people “, he said.

In the same vein, a commercial driver, Mr Yinka Soremi described officials of the scheme as extortionists who are out to create a crisis for the State.

He frowned at the way in which they obstruct major roads in the bid to stop moving vehicles early in the morning, saying their activities are presently generating fuss amongst his colleagues.

“The way these people are going about their activities, they will soon plunge the state into crisis, when we are still complaining about extortionist tendencies of security agencies on the roads, these people are now adding another burden to us; we would not allow this madness to continue”.

In his reaction, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Sanitation Dr Temitope Oladele confirmed that the Ministry engaged the services of some individuals to check the rate of emission of gases coming out from vehicles on the roads across the state.

According to him, the rationale behind the scheme is to control the emission of gases into the air.

Debunking the alleged extortion and Harassment of motorists, the PS said that the ministry did not commission them to extort any road users , saying under no circumstances would they do that, arguing that motorists are expected to pay the service rendered to by the officials.

While speaking on modus operandi, Oladele said that the officials of Emission Control Scheme are not to be obstructive , rather there should be designated places to check the vehicles for the emission of gasses .

“Jay Jay venture is an outfit commissioned by the government to check vehicles for the release of toxic gases into the atmosphere in order to ensure that Osun state is safe for all and preserve the environment for the coming generations.

“We don’t want harmful gases to destroy the ozone layer. This service is not limited to state of Osun alone, they are doing it in some other states of the nation and it’s base on executive order” he stated.

He further explained that the scheme was designed to perform ‘mandatory service’ to the people as well as generating revenue for the government.

He, however, added that investigations would be carried out on the alleged extortion and harassment of motorists by the officials.