The governorship candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Olufunso Doherty, has proposed vocational training, skills acquisition and employment opportunities as measures to tackle the activities of transport touts, popularly known as agberos, in Lagos State.
Doherty made the proposal during the 2027 Lagos Governorship Debate, where he described the agbero network as a multi-dimensional problem that required political commitment, institutional independence and deliberate social intervention to address.
He said tackling the problem would begin with electing a government that was not dependent on the network, arguing that such an administration would have the political will to confront those operating the system.
“The first step is that the government has to be elected outside of the agbero network. That is not beholden to the agbero network. And then you have the political will to deal with it,” he said.
The NDC candidate explained that the network operated like a pyramid, with many people at the lower levels participating in the activities primarily to earn a living, while a larger share of the proceeds went to those at the top.
He, however, argued that addressing the situation required more than confronting individuals involved, stressing the need to tackle the economic conditions that pushed people into the activities.
As part of his proposed approach, Doherty promised to expand technical and vocational education through the establishment of more skills acquisition centres to equip residents with employable skills.
He also linked the proposed intervention to the modernisation of Lagos’ transportation system, saying the sector could create alternative employment opportunities for people currently engaged in agbero activities.
According to him, the expansion of public transportation would create jobs in driving, conducting and maintaining buses, as well as servicing trains, providing opportunities for those willing to move away from street-level transport operations.
“Somebody has to drive the buses, somebody has to be the conductor, somebody has to maintain the buses, somebody has to maintain the trains. These are the people who you can redirect to that work,” Doherty added.
The issue of agbero activities remains a major concern in Lagos, particularly around motor parks and major roads, where transport operators and commuters have frequently raised concerns about touting, harassment and the collection of levies.
