The stage is set for a major confrontation between the Lagos State Government and commercial motorcyclists and tricycle operators otherwise known as Okada and Keke riders today.
…Say, we’re waiting for the taskforce
… As ban takes effect from today
… Residents commend ban, express fears
… 600 deaths recorded in 10,000 Okada accidents in Lagos
…If this ban came early, my husband would’ve been alive —Bereaved lady
…Benefits of the ban
By Ishola Balogun, Evelyn Usman, Olasunkanmi Akoni and Samuel Ameh
The stage is set for a major confrontation between the Lagos State Government and commercial motorcyclists and tricycle operators otherwise known as Okada and Keke riders today.
Last week, the state government announced the ban on their activities in six Local Government Areas and nine Local Council Development Areas in the state, with its enforcement to begin today, February 1, 2020.
Other states in the federation have equally banned them but they found their way to Lagos.
The decision to ban them according to the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, was reached after consultation with stakeholders and the State Security Council, in compliance with the extant Transport Sector Reform Law 2018. The consultation with stakeholders he said, was necessitated by the debate on what had been widely referred to as the motorcycles and tricycles menace.
But the Okada riders have vowed to resist the ban and dared the law enforcement agents to come after them saying they (Okada riders) were waiting for them. According to them, they had no other means of livelihood and they were not ready to go into robbery.
Indeed, some of these commercial motorcyclists operate with reckless abandon without consideration to the laws of the land. A good number of commercial motorcyclists constitute nuisance and disorderliness which make Lagos State a mockery of its self acclaimed Centre of Excellence.
For instance, some of them brazenly block the road, preventing motorists access. When challenged, they would gang-attack the motorist.
Aside that, the security threat posed by some of these riders can not be overlooked. Lagos, with an estimated population of 24 million and due to its economic and socio-political importance in the country, keeps attracting migration of people and this has made it to have its fair share of security challenges.
For instance, most commercial motorcycle riders whose operations were banned in other states, found their way to Lagos. Among them are those with sinister motive under the guise of looking for better living condition.
Unfortunately, not many Lagosians are alive to witness this ban as they were sent to unprepared graves in accidents either while on motorcycles, or while standing at bus-stops waiting to board buses to their respective destinations.
Statistics show that between 2016 to 2019, more than 10,000 motorcycles accidents were recorded at the General Hospitals alone. This number excludes unreported cases and those recorded by private hospitals.
Also, 600 deaths resulting from these incidents according to the Lagos State Government were recorded till date.
Some who narrowly escaped death, have indelible scars to show for mounting motorbikes, while others , among who is a single mother identified simply as Modupe, are still undergoing treatment at the hospital. In Modupe’s case, she never mounted a motorbike. She was knocked down while crossing the road at Jakande estate, Oke-Afa area of Lagos, on August 27, 2019. Since then, she has been at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, over her inability to clear the accumulated bills.
Over 10,000 avoidable accidents, 600 deaths recorded
According to Omotoso, the measures were taken by the government in response to “scary figures” of fatal accidents recorded from operations of Okada and tricycles, saying it had resulted in preventable loss of lives, “their impermissible movements on restricted highways has also contributed to traffic jams.”
“After a robust assessment of the debate on what has been widely referred to as the motorcycle (Okada) and tricycle (Keke) menace, the state government and the State Security Council have decided that the security and safety of lives of residents are paramount.
Source :Vanguard
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