TOAN names Abdul-Azeez 'Istijabah' Abiola interim Lagos chairman for six months
- The Tricycle Owners Association of Nigeria has named Alhaji Abdul-Azeez Abiola, known as Istijabah, as its interim Lagos chairman.
- National president Augustine Agbo-Akpe said the six-month appointment is meant to unite tricycle operators ahead of an election.
- Abiola told park leaders his job is to reorganise the association, not to sack anyone.
Tricycle operators in Lagos have a new interim leader. The Tricycle Owners Association of Nigeria (TOAN) has named Alhaji Abdul-Azeez Abiola, popularly known as Istijabah, as its Lagos State chairman for an interim period of six months.
The association's national president, Comrade Augustine Agbo-Akpe, announced the decision at the Nigeria Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) office in Lagos, according to a report by Independent. The NURTW Lagos chairman, Comrade Mustapha Adekunle Sego, said the union received a letter from TOAN's national leadership introducing Abiola as the man to coordinate the association's affairs for the next six months.
The move matters for everyday Lagosians because transport unions shape how tricycle operators work at motor parks across the state. A peaceful reorganisation could mean fewer clashes at parks and steadier transport for commuters who rely on keke napep for short trips.
Why the change now
According to the report, the appointment is meant to bring peace to the tricycle transport sector and prepare the association for a proper election. The national leadership said it wanted to reduce the number of associations operating in the sector.
Agbo-Akpe told members not to see the change as a threat to their positions. He said the reorganisation was about unity, not removing people from office, and that the association had entrusted the role to Abiola until an election is held.
Abiola, for his part, said he sees the appointment as a responsibility to reorganise and strengthen the association's structure. He told zonal and branch chairmen that the exercise was not meant to remove them, and urged members to avoid chaos at motor parks.
He also said the union belongs to its members collectively, not to him, and that leaders will one day leave the stage. Sego described NURTW and TOAN as closely aligned organisations, adding that the resolution of differences between TOOAN and TOAN had paved the way for a unified umbrella body for tricycle operators in Lagos.
What happens next
Abiola will hold the position for six months while the association prepares for an election. He asked members with any issue to come to him, saying his door is open.