On Thursday, February 19, 2026, thousands of dispatch riders in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) converged at the FCT Administration Secretariat in Area 11, Abuja, to protest against what they termed debilitating multiple taxation.
The riders personally appealed to the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, requesting his intervention to cease what they described as extortion by revenue agents, according to Daily Independent.
During the demonstration, spokesperson Mr. Olawale Ilesanmi stated that the riders were not averse to paying taxes, emphasizing their continual fulfillment of legislative requirements.
He expressed regret that the increasing layers of taxation had grown intolerable.
He stated that dispatch riders presently remit approximately N13,000 annually to the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), as well as to the Bwari and Gwagwalada Area Councils.
He asserted that a new revenue collector had lately surfaced, demanding N25,000 on behalf of the FCT Administration, a rate he characterized as considerably higher than current costs.
Ilesanmi asserted that numerous motorcycles owned by riders had been confiscated, with proprietors purportedly coerced into paying the new N25,000 fee prior to the retrieval of their vehicles.
The N25,000 significantly exceeds the payments made to the area councils. He stated, “We reject the imposition of multiple taxation that adversely impacts our livelihoods in Abuja.”
He stated that in addition to annual fees, passengers are have to pay N300 each time they access marketplaces within the city.
“This indicates that if a rider engages in the market ten times daily, he incurs a fee of N300 for each instance,” he elucidated.
The protest was subsequently halted after officials from the FCT Transportation Secretariat intervened, engaging in conversations with the dispatch riders’ leaders and assuring them that their issues would be addressed.
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