According to eyewitnesses, the conflict began when union members disagreed over the election of new leaders, with one faction pushing to keep the old leadership and another supporting the newly elected leaders.
A timely arrival of Nigerian troops helped avert a potential bloody clash over a change of leadership by members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) operating at Lugbe bus station, Abuja on Thursday morning.
The atmosphere at the bus station, a popular transport hub located along the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, was warlike when our correspondent was there at around 10:15 this morning.
According to eyewitnesses, the conflict began when union members disagreed over the election of new leaders, with one faction pushing to keep the old leadership and another supporting the newly elected leaders.
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What started as heated arguments and threats between the opposing factions degenerated following the incursion of cart pushers into the controversy.
The intervention of the cart pushers got some members angry, resulting in a physical battle and stampede at the bus station.
In the ensuing battle, angry cab drivers, touts and street urchins freely deployed dangerous weapons like bows, arrows, and cutlasses to settle scores in the battle of supremacy, leading to general commotion in the area as commuters scampered for safety.
Fortunately, troops from the Nigerian army surfaced to deescalate the situation.