The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Okada

  • Okada riders protest against union imposition

    Okada riders protest against union imposition

    Commercial Motorcyclists aka Okada riders in Egbeda, Alimosho Local Government area of Lagos State yesterday protested against the “imposition of the union” on them.

    The riders, in their hundreds, stormed the ANACOWA Motorcycle Owners and Riders Association, an affiliate of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), to complain about their members being registered under the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW).

    According to a unit chairman in Olugbede Park, Egbeda, Yinusa Mohammed, “We are committed and loyal to ANACOWA and we have been operating until Motorcyclists Association of Lagos State (MOALS) and Amalgamated Commercial Motorcycle Owner and Riders Association of Nigeria (ACOMORAN) have been imposing themselves on us which we rejected. We believe there is freedom of association and we have chosen where we wish to operate. We reject MOALS.”

    Mohammed urged his colleagues to remain calm and be law, abiding, promising that the situation will be resolved amicably.

    A member, Moses Nwachukwu, said he was pleased with the Alimosho Local Government Executive Secretary, Jelili Sulayman who gave them the permit to operate, adding: “Please warn NURTW to stop imposing themselves on; us we have our parks and we have never disturbed any park. MOALS are the ones carrying guns threatening us to belong to their group.”

  • Okada ban and Lagos’ safety

    Total ban on okada will not kill anyone but will provide safer roads while the public will be made to patronise other means of transportation that are safer. People always think it will bring about hardship on general public but the disadvantages outweigh the advantages”.  – Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), Abuja (2014)

    Leadership, of men and materials entails having the clear capacity to understand the contending issues at stake and mustering the political will to take hard decisions and implementing them promptly. The salutary aim of course, is to find lasting solutions to persisting, socio-economic or political challenges, all for the common good. In so doing, the leader, acting in concert with the relevant team of technocrats, critically analyze all the factors at play. These should also include the likely implications on the stakeholders before arriving at the conclusion. But when it has to do with the protection of  lives and property, which he solemnly swore to before the public, his action could be more drastic.  Indeed, he would likely be driven by seeking enduring good than pandering to the wishes of the critics, or being swayed by the temporary pains of those who may have benefitted from the anomalies being corrected.

    It is within this context that one must take a dispassionate look at the recent threat by the Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, to enforce a total ban on commercial motorcycles (aka okada) operations in the Lagos metropolis. In fact, not a few public affairs analysts feel this has become necessary, given the recent bloody, inter-ethnic clash in the Ketu-Mile 12 area of the state, ignited by a dispute between an okada operator and a passerby. It led to the loss of lives and property worth millions of naira. That was the last straw that broke the camel’s back. Now, tough choices have to be made on the part of the governor as the chief security officer of the state. Elsewhere, such hard or harsh policy decisions have been taken that have paid off, eventually.

    For instance, Lee Kuan Yew, the pragmatic economist who engineered Singapore’s economic miracle, as its Prime Minister between 1959 and 1990 took such hard stance. Without it, he could not have transformed the once unrecognized  island, devoid of natural resources to rival the likes of Hong Kong and Manhattan, with solid infrastructures, skyscrapers and alluring tourist attractions. In a similar vein, when in 1974, Sheikh Rashid tasked the young Mohammed with overseeing the growth of  Dubai International Airport, hard choices had to be taken to carve out the dream that it has become this day. Some people had to bear the brunt at the beginning of the implementation of the structural changes. Similarly, compelling traffic-related situations as we face in Lagos may inform tougher and more stringent measures, in order to save more lives from being wasted.

    It would be recalled, that the immediate past administration of  Babatunde Fashola, irked by the menace posed by the okada riders had signed the Lagos Road Traffic Law 2012, on August 2, 2012 which restricts okada operations in at least 492 of the 9,200 roads across the metropolis. It was with the intention of ensuring safety and orderly flow of traffic within the metropolis. But sad to note that some four years after, the problems posed by the okada operators have worsened rather than abate in spite of the restrictions. It is a common sight to find them plying against traffic flow along Pen Cinema-Fagba, Agege-Abule-Egba and the Ketu routes. Some of the operators have been accomplices in series of armed robbery attacks and fatal accidents, with ample evidence when one visits Igbo Orthopedic Hospital, Yaba.

    Governor Ambode has convincing reasons therefore, to approach the Lagos State House of Assembly to amend the law from the restriction of okada operations within some routes to total ban of their operations in the state. Indeed, as a stickler for the rule of law, he cannot be comfortable with the flagrant abuse of the law by okada riders, added to reports of some robbery incidents perpetrated with the motorcycles.

    Interestingly, similar reasons were adduced by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) while placing a total ban on commercial motorcycles in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in 2014. According to Mrs. Susan Ajenge, the then FCT Sector Commander of FCT, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the ban of okada within the city centre drastically reduced the rate of accidents in the area. In her words: “Before the ban of okada in the city centre, hospitals and emergency wards were always filled with okada accidents’ victims, same with mortuaries, but this has drastically reduced as result of the ban”.

    Though some hard-line critics would vociferously argue that a total ban would be insensitive, given the fact Lagos is the commercial nerve centre of the country, with the seaports and high density population, the long-term advantages should be taken into consideration. A smoother flow of traffic, less accidents and robberies traceable to the operators would be guaranteed. So also would be the reports of police harassment and extortion of okada riders.

    In fact, one of the reasons Abuja presents a beautiful vista and instantly attracts a visitor, even at first sight is the easy traffic flow, devoid of okada operators and clustered buildings. Lagos can achieve a similar scenic scenario if laws are amended and enforced. There are other seaport cities or capitals in both the African continent, nay the world that have population issues to that of Lagos but not solved by motorcycle operators. Name them; Cairo, Tunis, Johannesburg, Hong Kong, Seoul, Bangkok, Jakarta, Istanbul and Casablanca are some of them which have adopted creative strategies to combat traffic gridlock in the absence of motorcycles.

    The position of Governor Ambode that the city could well do without their menacing presence is in tandem with the 21st Century Lagos City Master Plan, currently evolving under his people-friendly administration. With the light-rail project in progress, inner roads receiving the desired attention and increasing emphasis on water-based transport system, what is needed is massive public enlightenment on the immense benefits of Lagos without okada.

    There is little doubt that many of the operators would be thrown out of job and suffer some temporary economic setback. But they could seek alternative means of livelihood by keying into the N25 billion Youth Empowerment Scheme of the pragmatic Ambode-led administration. With it, they will be empowered with requisite skills acquisition that would be more enduring than riding motorcycles for commercial purpose.

    Those who however, think that taking to crime would be an option should have a rethink. This administration has zero tolerance for all shades of crime and criminality, as violators of laws would only have themselves to blame.

    On its part, the government will do well to engage the relevant transport unions of the commercial okada operators in sustained sensitization programmes. All the members could be re-organized into skills cooperative societies. They should have their mindset reoriented towards finding suitable alternatives, with the aim of putting food on their families’ table. The time for the total ban on okada in Lagos is now.

     

    • Baje, a journalist writes from Lagos.
  • Okada rider shot dead at filling station

    Okada rider shot dead at filling station

    COMMERCIAL motorcyclist aka Okada rider was killed yesterday and three others injured when Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) officials allegedly shot at customers at a Forte Oil Filling Station in Festac, Lagos.

    Ossy Emeka died on the spot; the injured – Smart, Kabiru Yusuf (KB) and Diran – were whisked away by the NSCDC officials.

    According to his colleagues, the late Emeka, who recently started an auto spare-parts business, after his mother gave him N600,000, was about quitting commercial motorcycling.

    The NSCDC officials, who came in a patrol van, reportedly attempted to seize jerry cans of petrol from some black marketers.

    The officers, it was learnt, were led by some motorcyclists who were beneficiaries of the seized product.

    The motorcyclists were said to have led the officers from Second Rainbow into Festac Town because the petrol is given to them. They reportedly pointed out some of the black marketers and where their kegs were hidden.

    In anger, some youths and others, who queued up for fuel with their generators and motorcycle fuel tanks took on the beneficiaries of the seized fuel. The NSCDC men were said to have stopped a commercial bus and asked a passenger identified as Smart, who just bought petrol in a keg, to surrender it.

    Smart was said to have refused and the NSCDC men allegedly started beating him. Smart was said to have doused himself with the petrol.

    An eyewitness said: “Immediately he poured the fuel on his body, a female officer cocked her gun; shot Smart on his buttocks and kept shooting in the air. Then, she went and asked for permission from another man who was inside their vehicle and when she returned, she shot Diran alias Kowope and KB (Kabiru Yusuf) on their legs.

    “They shot sporadically for about 20 minutes here. Meanwhile, at G-Close, opposite the Festac Town Muslim Community (FTMC) Mosque, the NSCDC woman shot Ossy three times on his neck and chest.

    “As they were shooting, people were running in the confusion. Ossy was carrying his motorcycle’s fuel tank and heading towards the filling station to buy fuel. He was not a black marketer and he stays on Sixth Avenue.

    “They shot him three times and ensured he was dead.”

    The eyewitness, who gave his name as Emmanuel said the NSCDC officials abandoned his Eze’s body and took about five people hostage including the three with gunshot injuries.

    Another eyewitness, who gave her name as Ada, said all was calm until the arrival of the NSCDC officials.

    She claimed the army, navy personnel and policemen from the Area E Command were inside the filling station maintaining order, adding that the NSCDC men arrived after they left.

    “The army, navy and police were here. They were flogging people who were not maintaining peace and also chasing black marketers away from the filling station. Everywhere was peaceful and calm.

    “But when they moved upward few minutes later, the NSCDC people came with some Okada riders. Those NSCDC people are not even from Festac division, they came all the way from First Rainbow where they have been seizing fuel and giving it out.

    “Before they shot Ossy three times, they cut him with knife first. It was the NSCDC people that cut him. After cutting him around his upper arm, they shot him three times.

    “I really do not know why they killed him because he was not selling fuel. He’s a very quiet Okada man. They left his body there, it was police that came and carried him away. The woman who started the shooting is fair in complexion,” she said.

    There were blood stains on the ground of the filling station when The Nation got there yesterday.

    The Area E Commander, Chris Owolabi, an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), and the Festac Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Monday Agbonika, led their men to pacify the angry youth.

    Soldiers attached to the Operation Mesa have taken over the area; the sale of fuel has been suspended at the station.

    A woman, who described herself as Kabiru Yusuf’s mother was seen begging policemen to rescue her son from the NSCDC men.

    According to her, the officials took her son to Alausa, alongside two others.

    “I really do not know what happened. But I got a call that my son was taken to Alausa that’s why I came here. My son does not sell fuel. I heard he was not shot, others said he was shot, so, I do not know which one to believe,” she said.

    At the time of this report, the police were still gathering information on the NSCDC men and their unit.

    Police spokesperson, Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent (SP), said investigation was on to identify the civil defence operatives.

    “Some yet to be identified civil defence men in a patrol vehicle had scuffle with some men at AP filling station which led to indiscriminate firing from the civil defence personnel.

    “One motorcycle (Okada) rider Emeka other name yet unknown was shot dead while three others severely injured. The men of Area E Command were called upon, the Area Commander ACP Chris Tokunbo Owolabi is currently on ground restoring normalcy in the area; the command has commenced investigation to identify the civil defence operatives that were involved,” she said.

  • Okada riders’ union warns against illegal operators

    Okada riders’ union warns against illegal operators

    The Lagos State chapter of ANACOWA Motorcycle Owners and Riders Association, an affiliate of Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) yesterday called on the Lagos State Government to stop the illegal operations of unrecognised association.Its chairman Suleiman Adeshina said there are only two recognised associations in the state, which is ANACOWA and MOALS, an affiliate of National Union of road Transport Workers (NURTW).

    Government, Adeshina said, should checkmate illegal associations springing up.

    “Those associations are operating illegally using our registered name but creating confusion as if they are ANACOWA and it is giving us a lot of headache. They are creating nuisance and embarrassment to the recognised associations,” he said.

    He said most of the Okada riders plying restricted areas and highways are not their members, saying that touts have infiltrated the business.

  •  Okada : Will Ambode bell the cat?

    It was sometime in 1989 and the defunct Directorate of Food, Roads and Rural Infrastructure (DFRRI) was having a workshop in Bauchi State. Participants were expected from all parts of the country. Those of us coming from Lagos gathered at the Murtala Mohammed Airport in Ikeja, as directed, for our flight to Jos enroute Bauchi. Getting to board our flight was a fight as it was in the days of the almighty Nigeria Airways, the nation’s  sole carrier then. At intervals, following announcements, we rushed to board flights going our way as we used to rush for that contraption calledmolue, the once-upon-a-time popular commercial bus in Lagos

    There was chaos at the airport that day because hundreds of us – university teachers, members of the diplomatic corps, military personnel, captains of commerce and media men, among others – were going to Bauchi, but there were no flights. We eventually left the airport around 5pm. On arrival in Jos, the Plateau State capital, we were conveyed by buses to Bauchi, which is about 40 minutes drive from the Tin City.  In Bauchi, Gbenga Ayeni, then of West Africa Magazine, Kudo Eresia-Eke, then of Sunray, and I struck a bond as we explored the town together. Since Jos, Bauchi and Gombe are coterminous, we moved from one town to the other. And our means of transportation was motorcycle.

    It was in Bauchi that I first saw motorcycle being used as means of transportation. And as young reporters then, Gbenga, Kudo and I had fun riding on achaba, as motorcycle is called in the North, to our destinations. Whether going to Zaranda Hotel, where the workshop was held, or to Awalah Hotel, where we lodged, we enjoyed taking the achaba as the operators were stationed in strategic corners of the town, waiting for passengers. To us, it was strange seeing motorcycles being used as commercial buses, so to say, because in Lagos we were used to danfo and molue.

    Years later, the achaba landed in Lagos, but under a different name,  okada. The coming of okada changed the face of transportation in Lagos. From the remote and innermost parts of the metropolis, where commercial motorcyclists started their operation, they found their way into the heart of the city, competing with motorists on the highway. Since okada became means of transportation in Lagos, though illegally, things have not been the same in the megacity. With it came a steep rise in crime, fatal accidents and frequent clashes between okada riders and other road users. Okada riders see themselves as lords of the road. They fight for the right of way with motorists; take one way; jump traffic light and ride without helmet.

    Okada is not recognised as means of transportation in any part of the world because it is not safe to use. Yet, we have people who take okada from Ikotun, one end of the city to Lekki, another end of the metropolis,  because, according to them, ‘’we are in a hurry’’. In a hurry, on a machine without any safety measure with the passenger exposed to the element! Though okada business may be  thriving , that should not be the reason for retaining what has become the major cause of crises in the state? Moreover, it adds no value to the economy. To check the excesses of okada riders, former Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola restricted their operation to 492 of the 9200 roads in the state.

    They are complying with the restriction in the breach. Up till today, there is no part of the road where you do not find okada despite the restrictions contained in the Lagos Road Traffic Law 2012.  For how long will we tolerate the crudity and lawlessness of okada riders?  It is high time the traffic law 2012 was reviewed to ban okada operation in the state.

    The buck stops on Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s desk to decide the fate of okada. It has become urgent for his administration to do something about okada operators before they turn the state upside down with their violent streak. Okada riders operate on short fuse. Whenever there is trouble on the road or in a market, look well, an okada rider will be at the centre of it. No administration will watch and allow a bunch of people to throw its state into anarchy. This is what okada riders are trying to do in Lagos, if they are not stopped now. It is where there is no law that offences are not committed.

    Lagos State has laws; so why should okada riders break them at will and go scot-free? Their operations have been restricted, yet they keep operating as if they have the freedom to run around in every part of the state. If restriction cannot stop them, a ban will surely do the magic so that we do not witness again the kind of incident that happened at Agiliti near Mile 12 about two weeks ago.  What happened in Mile 12 on March 3 was uncalled for and that was not the first time okada men would behave like that.

    An okada man hit a woman and his refusal to take her to hospital led to a riot. The okadaman is Hausa and the woman, a Yoruba. In the twinkling of an eye, the story had changed to Hausa fighting Yoruba. Injustice is injustice anywhere; it has no colour, religion or region. What the okada man will not accept was what he wanted to do to his victim. Some of us would have been witnesses to how they block the road over minor accidents involving their colleagues, harassing the ‘offending’ motorist and other road users. We have also seen how okada is used to rob in traffic, banks and other places.

     

    What good does okada serve? None; whatsoever.  Its patrons may say it eases their movement, but should that be at the expense of the larger society, which is at risk of its operation? There is nothing good about okada.  Many of the riders use their okada to rob, kill and kidnap and they want the government to look the other way. No serious government, which has the public interest at heart, will do that. What is more, many orthopaedic hospitals are full of victims of okada accidents. It is not a business to invest in.

    Thank God, Ambode has created Office of Job and Wealth Creation. Okada operators can approach the agency and see how they can fit into its programmes because whether they like it or not, the days of okada riding are numbered. It may be a hard decision for the governor to take but history will remember him if he takes it because it will be in the overall interest of this megacity. Heavens will not fall if okada is banned and the public will surely find alternative means of movement after its abolition.

    To ban okada is a task that must be done and the House of Assembly must be prepared to play its role in amending the traffic law 2012 to make commercial motorcycling illegal in the state. By so doing, it will be helping Ambode in pushing forth his mantra : itesiwaju ipinle ilu  Eko lo jewa logun. Yes, the progress of Lagos should be the desire of its true residents, no matter where they come from.

  • RRS smashes Okada robbery gang

    RRS smashes Okada robbery gang

    Rapid Response Squad (RRS) operatives have arrested three teenage robbers, who specialised in snatching motorcycles.

    Daniel Dali, 19 and two others were arrested on Friday around 10:48pm in Ajegunle by patrolling RRS men.

    Dali, an Okada rider from Cotonou in Benin Republic, and one of the other suspects had reportedly snatched an handbag from a woman, who shouted for help. Her cry attracted the RRS team, which chashed the duo. Dali escaped, but his accomplice was arrested. Dali and the other suspect was later arrested after the police combed the area.

    The suspects reportedly admitted at the RRS Headquarters in Alausa, Ikeja that they snatched the handbag, which they did not know contained two wraps of “fufu” and stew.

    At their apartment in Ajegunle, two of their roommates were also arrested but released after being quizzed by the police.

    A statement by RRS quoted Dali as describing himself as the syndicate’s Okada rider. He said he started Okada snatching last year after his mother’s death.

    “My mother’s death forced me into robbery. My mother gave me everything I wanted. If I need anything, I go to her and she would provide it for me, even when I was working. After her death, I had no helper. I mean, there was nobody to turn to again. My father lives in the village in Cotonou, but I don’t want to go back there.

    “I have been lynched in an operation before and abandoned at Ago–Hausa, Ajegunle but woke up the following day. I have been involved in countless robbery operations.

    The suspect added: “Bright and I have been to four operations. In one of our outing, we snatched a recharge card worth N35, 000. He sold it and gave me only N5,000. Although, there are occasional instances when we get nothing from operations but we don’t use guns. We have never operated with guns. We snatch bags, phones and other belongings and escape with Okada.

    “We have choice routes we operate. The areas we have operated are Boundary, Mile 2, New Roundabout, Wilmer and Ajegunle. Ashaolu was operating with Poly before he joined me. We use the Okada given to me by a woman for instalmental payment. This is the third time she would be buying Okada for me. One was stolen at gun point, another, faulty and then this. I have only paid, N75,000 out of N300,000.”

    Bright said he had only operated seven times.

    “During fuel crisis, we suck fuel from vehicles parked on the streets to operate. Several boys do this business in Ajegunle. I know of a team, that lives in different hotels, sleeps in day time and operates at night. This is the only job they do to survive,” he said.

    The suspects have been transferred to State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID).

    Police spokesperson Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent (SP), said the suspects have given information that would lead to the arrest of other gangs.

  • Okada robbery gang members arrested

    Okada robbery gang members arrested

    Operatives of the Rapid Response Squad of the Lagos State Police Command have arrested three teenage robbers, who specialise in “okada” snatch and run” .
    Members of the gang, including Daniel Dali, 19; Emmanuel Ashaolu, 17 and Ikenna Bright, 17, were arrested on Friday in Ajegunle by the surveillance team of RRS on regular patrol of the area.
    Dali, an okada rider from Cotonu and Ashaolu were reported to have snatched a handbag from a lady, but unknowingly to them, the bag contained two wraps of “fufu” and stew.
    Their victim’s shout for help prompted the RRS team to pursue the duo on okada leading to the arrest of Ashaolu while Dali escaped.The RRS team mobilized a decoy Team of RRS Intelligence who combed the area late in the night, leading to the arrest of Dali, the okada rider and Bright.
    At the suspects’ apartment, two other roommates were also arrested but later released after cross examination by the RRS officials.
    However, Dali on interrogation stated that he is the okada rider for the syndicate and disclosed that he started the business of okada snatching and run in April 2015 after the death of his mother.

  • Accident: BRT Crushes Motorcyclist at Ikorodu

    Accident: BRT Crushes Motorcyclist at Ikorodu

    A ghastly motor accident has just occurred at Agric on the Ikorodu road as a Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) vehicle just ran over a commercial motorcyclist (Okada).

    According to eye witness account, the Cyclist was riding on the BRT lane as it is the case with motorcyclists trying to beat traffic.

    It was gathered that a woman’s shout caused the rider to drop something as he lost concentration on the road. He thus miscalculated the proximity of the bus to him and decided to stop and pick up the item.

    Unfortunately for him the bus was too close and was on high speed as such he got hit and crushed.

    As at the time of filing this report, there’s a huge crowd at the scene as operatives of the Police Force try to control the crowd.

    Currently, there are no BRT buses plying the route out of fear of mob action.

  • Lagos Marathon: Okada riders make brisk business

    Commercial motorcyclists, otherwise called “Okada’’, on Saturday took advantage of the restriction of vehicular movement on certain roads for the Access Bank Lagos City Marathon to operate on restricted corridors.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Okada riders took advantage of the stranded commuters at bus stops along Ikorodu road to charge exorbitant fares in the metropolis.

    NAN reports that between Maryland and National Stadium bus stop in Surulere, they charged as much as N700 and N1,500 for what ordinarily should have been N200 depending on the operator .

    Between Fadeyi and Maryland or stadium, they collect between N500 and N1000.

    NAN observed that people who could not wait till 10 a.m. were the ones who rode on commercial motorcycles, that in most cases carried two persons in violation of traffic law.

    Those who could not afford it resorted to trekking long distances.

    Some commuters who spoke with NAN said one side of the 10-lane Ikorodu road would have been left open since the athletes were only using one side.

    NAN also observed that some people were not aware of the marathon as they were shocked to discover that the roads were empty.

    “I thought it was environmental sanitation day. I don’t know there was anything like marathon that would stop vehicular movement,” Mrs Adebisi Lawal, a trader, told NAN.

    A motorist, who simply identified himself as Raymond, told NAN at Fadeyi BRT bus stop that he had waited at the spot for about three hours.

    Raymond said he was going to Surulere but was stopped by the police to wait till 10 a.m.

  • No going back on okada, Keke ban

    The Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Permanent Secretary, Dr. Babatope Ajakaiye has said that commercial motorcycles (okada) and tricycles (Keke Napep) remain banned from operating within the 250 square kilometers of the Federal Capital City, Abuja.

    Ajakaiye stated during a meeting with the executive officers of the sector unions of the Okada/Keke-Napep Owners and Riders at the FCT Minister’s Conference Room, Area 11, Garki I District, Abuja.

    The Permanent Secretary further said that tricycles and motorcycles, popularly called Okada and Keke would only operate outside the city centre and designated areas like estates and Area Councils respectively.

    Ajakaiye stated that the Abuja Master Plan did not make provision for Okada and Keke to ply in the Abuja city centre; adding that the FCT Administration would ensure this law is not flouted.

    His words: “Okada remains banned throughout the Abuja city centre and Keke will also not operate within the city centre too, except in designated areas like estates”.

    He remarked that majority of the roads in the Abuja city are express roads, because the Abuja Master Plan as well as the Abuja Transportation Master Plan never envisaged the use of commercial motorcycles and Keke Napep.

    According to him, commercial motorcycles are injurious to the riders as well as the passengers and the government has a duty to protect the lives and property of all her Citizens.

    Subsequently, the Permanent Secretary read out the resolutions after the meeting, which was all agreed and adopted by the stakeholders present.

    The stakeholders at the meeting resolved that no Okada and Keke must operate in the City Centre and that they immediately form Associations to be registered with the FCT Directorate of Road Traffic Services (VIO).

    All commercial riders of tricycle or motorcycle, it was agreed, must belong to one of the Unions or Association for easy identification and control, particularly with the prevailing security situation in the country.

    It was also agreed that all Okada and Keke must have official vehicle registration and at the point of registration, evidence must be shown that the Okada and Keke riders belong to a union. The VIO office is to spell out the appropriate rules for their operations.

    However, the Permanent Secretary advised the executives of the Unions to immediately commence the sensitization of their members on the need to comply with these resolutions.

    “As Executives, we want you to go to your members and tell them to please adhere to the rules and regulations.  We want you to stay in the areas where you are allowed to do your business without molestation. If there is any reason where they are disturbing you in those areas, our doors are open to you. You are free to come and complain to us through your Executives and we will look at it,” he stressed.

    Dispelling the notion that the ban on Okada and Keke ceased to exist with the ouster of the previous Administration, Dr. Ajakaiye said Government is continuum and that every good thing must continue under the current Administration.