Funso Doherty, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) governorship candidate in Lagos State, has accused successive administrations of lacking the political will to tackle the activities of street touts popularly known as agberos.
Doherty made the allegation on Sunday during a governorship debate organised in Lagos by a consortium of media organisations.
He argued that vested interests within the state’s public transportation system were frustrating efforts to modernise the sector, leaving residents at the mercy of an inefficient and poorly organised transport network.
The candidate questioned why Lagos, despite its economic strength and resources, had been unable to replace thousands of ageing commercial buses with a more modern and efficient public transportation system.
He maintained that the continued dominance of small, rickety buses was not merely a consequence of poor planning but was sustained by an established network of interests benefiting from the existing arrangement.
“Our public transportation system is not modernised. Thousands of rickety buses are moving around,” he said.
“We must ask ourselves: are these what our people deserve? Why has it taken so long to modernise public transportation?”
Doherty identified the agbero system as one of the major obstacles to reforming public transportation in the state, arguing that the activities of transport touts had become entrenched because of the interests surrounding the informal transport economy.
He said the chaotic operation of commercial buses was part of a wider ecosystem that had continued to undermine efforts to establish an orderly transportation system.
“Many of us understand this notion of the agbero system that people talk about. There is no political will to deal with that problem,” he said.
The NDC candidate’s comments come amid growing concerns over traffic management, public transportation and the activities of street touts across Lagos, as political parties and their candidates intensify preparations for the 2027 governorship election.