Pandemonium broke out Tuesday in Onitsha, Anambra State, as commercial transport operators clashed with touts and other illegal revenue collectors in the State.
The bus drivers, in a bid to register their grievances, protested and blocked the ever-busy Onitsha end of the River Niger bridge, thereby preventing the inflow and outflow of vehicules on the road.
The protesters claimed that blocking the highway was the only way to express their dissatisfaction over incessant extortion by touts, illegal revenue agents and lack of motor parks, alleging that the State government has turned a deaf ear to their plight.
The situation made commuters and pedestrians to trek long distances to their various destinations while other vehicle owners made use of inner roads. People also ran helter-skelter in a bid to avoid being attacked by the aggrieved protesters some of whom resorted to violence.
The protesters had confrontation with the revenue agents, but the quick intervention of the security operatives prevented it from snowballing into heavy fracas.