BREAKING: Ondo motorists left stranded as tanker blocks Lagos–Ore–Benin highway
By Boye Oyeyemi
Hundreds of travellers and motorists were stranded on Wednesday following a major traffic disruption along the Lagos–Ore–Benin Expressway after a tanker driver reportedly blocked a section of the road at Oniparaga in Ondo State.
The incident, which lasted several hours, caused a heavy gridlock on the busy interstate route, leaving commuters, commercial drivers and other road users trapped in the traffic.
Reports circulating on social media initially claimed that tanker and trailer drivers had embarked on a protest over alleged harassment and extortion by police personnel operating along the highway.
The development generated concern among travellers, including candidates heading to recruitment centres for armed forces and paramilitary agencies, as well as business operators relying on the route for movement.
However, the Ondo State Police Command dismissed the claims, describing reports linking the blockage to police extortion as false and misleading.
The command’s spokesperson, DSP Abayomi Jimoh, said, “The Ondo State Police Command has noted reports circulating on some media platforms alleging that a protest along the Lagos–Ore–Benin Expressway was triggered by the extortion of motorists by police personnel. The Command wishes to categorically debunk these allegations and state that they are entirely false and misleading.”
According to him, preliminary investigations showed that the traffic obstruction was caused by a tanker driver who deliberately blocked part of the highway after a disagreement with police officers carrying out their lawful duties, resulting in temporary gridlock and inconvenience to commuters.
Jimoh added that the Commissioner of Police, Felix Ohagwu, had ordered the deployment of additional security and traffic management personnel to the area to restore normalcy, assuring road users that efforts were ongoing to clear the obstruction and ensure the free flow of traffic.
