ACOMORAN urges members to shun political violence
By VON
The Association of Amalgamated Commercial Motorcycle and Tricycle Owners, Repairers and Riders Association Of Nigeria, ACOMORAN has urged its members to desist from being used by politicians for political violence and negative activities that don’t contribute to the development of the Nigeria.
President of the Association Alhaji Babangida Maihula stated this during an interview with journalists at the ACOMORAN Mini Convention, Themed ‘Redefining ACOMORAN’ in Abuja.
Alhaji Maihula said the convention has decided to tell its leadership to go the grassroots and talk to members that no matter what happens non should be involved in political thuggery.
‘The convention decided to tell our members to go to the grassroots and talk to members not to be used for political thuggery’. ‘ACOMORAN is a non political organisation even though in periods like this we become political bride for all the politicians’
He said the Association has a rough estimate of ten to twelve million members.
The President said certain issues also necessitated the need for the convention, ‘in our constitution there is a clause that stated that the board of trustees members are life members, they stay till they are no more. We feel that as unrealistic considering the democratic setting of our organization. It was done since inception of the union that’s why we feel that by now it has to be democratically addressed. We want to spell out the tenure of the board of trustees and any other officer in the union.
Alhaji Maihula said all these and more has hindered the growth of the association, so need for reviewing the constitution.
On sanitising members, he said ‘we have started the process of registering members but not without some hitches when you are introducing something new it take time, the nature of recklessness has greatly reduced in our last Convention we were able to incorporate tricycles to the union. We open up the union to other members, even owners and repairers’.
He said the union’s interacted with the Federal Road Safety Corp and Vehicle Inspection Officers on enlightenment campaigns has made members aware of the need to drive safely, carefully and obey traffic rules.
‘In the rules of drivers license there was no consideration for an okada man who is a low income earner, it is a flat rate for both taxi and car drivers. We feel it’s not fair, we should be considered and reduce the price and make it obtainable for okada drivers’.’We are saying for anywhere you ban okada replace the quantity of people you laid off their job with tricycle. we are saying we need assurance of assistance from government to empower our members. We are the largest union of more than ninety five percent youths in the country’ he said.
