HURMA Raises Alarm Over Detention of Ejigbo PTD Members, Demands Immediate Release, Police Probe and Union Dissolution

The Human Rights Monitoring Agenda (HURMA) has demanded the immediate release of four detained members of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD), Ejigbo Unit, Lagos State, calling for an urgent police investigation and the dissolution of the union’s current leadership over alleged misconduct and abuse of process.

The group made the call during a press conference in Lagos, where its Executive Director, Comrade Buna Olaitan Isiak, described the detention as unjust and capable of escalating tensions within the petroleum transport sector if not urgently addressed.

He identified the detained tanker drivers as Kabiru Taiye Salami, Kazeem Adeniran, Saheed Alegbeleye and Oladeji Rahmon, noting that their continued incarceration raises serious human rights concerns and questions about due process.

Isiak urged the Nigeria Police Force to ensure transparency in handling the matter and to discipline any officer found to have acted outside the law or abused official authority during the arrest and detention of the individuals.

According to him, the crisis stems from a protracted intra-union leadership dispute within the PTD Ejigbo Unit, allegedly linked to attempts to influence or frustrate the conduct of a credible and democratic election within the unit.

He alleged that the conflict was exacerbated by interference from the PTD South West zonal leadership in collaboration with the national umbrella body, the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), leading to factional tensions and confrontation among members.

HURMA further claimed it received credible reports indicating that the confrontation was triggered by an individual allegedly acting in alignment with one of the factions, thereby escalating the already fragile situation within the union.

The rights group expressed particular concern that when members of both factions reportedly approached the Ejigbo Police Station to lodge formal complaints, the four individuals who presented themselves were allegedly arrested instead of receiving protection.

Isiak said the detainees were subsequently arraigned before multiple magistrates’ courts under what he described as questionable circumstances, before a detention order was eventually secured, resulting in their transfer to the Kirikiri Maximum Security Correctional Centre.

He warned that the manner of their arrest and detention suggests possible abuse of power and complicity by officers attached to Zone D of the Lagos State Police Command, adding that such actions could undermine public trust in law enforcement.

Beyond the demand for their release, HURMA also called for a comprehensive and impartial investigation into the roles played by the Ejigbo Police Station and Zone D Command, stressing that accountability is essential to restoring confidence in the justice system.

The organisation further urged the Inspector-General of Police and the Lagos State Commissioner of Police to intervene decisively to ensure justice, protect fundamental rights, and prevent further deterioration of industrial relations within the petroleum transport sector.

HURMA warned that failure to act swiftly could deepen divisions within the union, disrupt petroleum distribution operations, and pose broader risks to public order, emphasizing that justice, fairness and respect for the rule of law must prevail.