The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Okada

  • VIS official, Okada rider injured in accidents

    VIS official, Okada rider injured in accidents

    A vehicle Inspection Service (VIS) official and a commercial motorcyclist popularly known as okada rider were yesterday injured in two accidents in Lagos.

    The VIS man was hit when a Ford Explorer Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) and a Mistibushi L200 collided at LAB Bus Stop on Egbeda-Iyana Ipaja Road.

    The Okada rider broke his arm following a collision with a hit-and-run driver on Ijegun-Ikotun Road  in Igando-Ikotun Local Council Development Area (LCDA).

    An eyewitness said the Ford Explorer ran over the culvert to the other side of the road and hit the Mitsubishi L200 following brake failure.

    The VIS officer, who was about stopping the Mitsubishi L200 was hit, he added.

    But another eyewitness blamed the accident on drivers’ impatience, saying it was not caused by brake failure.

    “It wasn’t brake failure,” he said, “the Ford Explorer and the Mitsubishi L200 pick up were not patient enough, the Ford was coming from a U-Turn while the pickup did not want to give way, the Ford forced its way forcefully and the result is what you can see.”

    The other accident occurred around 5am in front of Premex Petrol Station, Ile Ibadan bus stop, Ijegun.

    An eye witness, Tajudeen Adeyemo, who works at the petrol station, said he was inside the office when he was called by the workers to see a man lying in front of the station.

    “When I got to the spot to check the victim, luckily for him I found his phone and called the last number he had dialled this morning (yesterday) before the accident happened and they were able to get in touch with his relatives,” he said.

    Adeyemo said, the okada rider’s relatives took him to hospital.

  • Lagos taskforce impounds over 1000 ‘Okada’s’ in four months

    Lagos taskforce impounds over 1000 ‘Okada’s’ in four months

    The Lagos State Task Force has impounded over 1,000 commercial motorcycles, popularly called “Okada” in the last four months for various traffic offences, chairman of the Lagos State Task Force on Environmental and Special Offences unit, Olubukola Abe, has said.

    Abe spoke while briefing reporters on the activities of the agency since he assumed duty.

    He noted that public complaints on the criminal acts perpetrated by the riders further informed the enforcement.

    The chairman said the seized motorcycles have been deployed to various crushing plants where they are recycled into metal by-products.

    He said 146 Okada’s were confiscated in June; 278 in July; 484 in August and 814 in September.

    “Any contravened motorcycle is as good as being gone for good in Lagos. This agency will not treat the law with levity but enforce it to the latter,” Abe vowed.

    He said the agency was determined to rid the state of all forms of environmental nuisances responsible for traffic gridlock, especially the Okada menace.

  • Task Force arrests 1,000 Okada riders, street traders

    Task Force arrests 1,000 Okada riders, street traders

    COMMERCIAL motorcyclists, operating in Lagos have again been warned to stay off all restricted routes in the state, failing which they risk arrest and prosecution.

    Task Force on the Environment and Miscellaneous Offences chairman, Olubukola Abe, a Superintendent of Police (SP), reminded the operators that Section 3 of the Lagos State Road Traffic Law of 2012 was still in force.

    According to Abe, motorcycle operators have been restricted to 475 of the 9100 roads in the state, excluding the highways and bridges.

    He stated law enforcement officers have been empowered to ensure compliance with the law and restore sanity on Lagos roads by curbing the excesses of motorcyclists (a.ka. Okada riders) and street traders.

    The Task Force chief confirmed that more than 1000 offenders, including motorcyclists and street traders, have been arrested since he assumed office August 9.

    He said the street hawkers will be arraigned for prosecution and their wares confiscated.

  • One feared dead in police, okada riders clash

    ONE person was feared dead and scores injured yesterday when policemen and commercial motorcyclists clashed at Ogolonto in Ikorodu, Lagos.

    But Lagos State Police chief Fatai Owoseni said there was no such clash, adding: “There was no riot in Ikorodu. There was no fight between police and motorcyclists. If police arrested motorcyclists, they are doing their job. No one was killed or injured”.

    The Nation gathered that the incident occurred about 9am, after the policemen allegedly impounded about 500 motorcycles.

    The policemen allegedly raided parks to arrest the motorcyclists.

    The angry motorcyclists reportedly vandalised government properties, including Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) and LAGBUS vehicles.

    An eyewitness, Fadeel Akinlolu, said the incident caused a traffic gridlock which lasted for over an hour.

    He said: “I saw more than five people injured on the ground. I really cannot say if anyone died because I was inside a bus. The problem started after policemen arrested about 500 okadas. The angry Okada riders started attacking government properties, which led to a fight with the policemen and state government officials. It took over one hour for calm to return and the gridlock cleared.”

    Saying there was no such incident, Owoseni stated: “We heard there was an issue there but the Area Commander and the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) were with me at Ikotun. So, I have released them so that they can go and investigate. They are yet to give me feedback, I will get across to my public relations officer (PRO) to issue a release once they get back to me.”

  • One killed as police, motorcyclists clash in Lagos

    One killed as police, motorcyclists clash in Lagos

    One person was on Thursday feared killed and several others injured during a violent clash that erupted between commercial motorcyclists and policemen.

    The incident occurred at Ogolonto in Ikorodu, a Lagos district, at about 9am, after the policemen allegedly impounded about 500 motorcycles.

    ‎Trouble started after the policemen allegedly raided various parks, impounded motorcycles and arresting their owners.

    A source who hinted The Nation said that the angry motorcyclist who decided to take laws into their hands, vandalised government properties, including Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) and LAGBUS vehicles‎.

    According to another eyewitness who gave him name as Fadeel Akinlolu, the incident caused heavy gridlock on the road that lasted for over an hour.

    He said: “I saw more than five people injured and on the ground. I really cannot say if anyone died because I was inside a bus. The problem started after policemen arrested about 500 okadas‎.

    “It got the motorcyclist angry and they started attacking government properties, which led to a fight between them, the policemen‎ and state government officials.

    “It took over one hour for calm to return and the gridlock cleared.”

    ‎However, the state Police Commissioner, Fatai Owoseni denied there was a fight between his men and motorcyclist.

    He ‎also stated that no one was killed, neither was anyone injured.

    Owoseni said: “There was no riot at Ikorodu. There was no fight between police and motorcyclists. If police arrested motorcycles, they are doing their jobs. No one was killed nor injured.

    “We heard there‎ was an issue there but the Area Commander and the DPO were with me at Ikotun. So, I have released them so that they can go and investigate.

    “They are yet to give me feedback, I will get across to my PRO to issue a release once they get back to me.‎”

  • Okada operation still suspended, says Ondo

    Ondo State government said yesterday that its suspension order on the operation of commercial motorcyclists, otherwise known as Okada, in the state capital, Akure, and the ban on ticketing by the operators are still in force.

    In a statement, the Commissioner for Information Kayode Akinmade said the “suspension order stands until government is done with its reformation process on the operation of the commercial motorcycle operators”.

    “The clarification came following reports that the order is being flouted by some commercial motorcycle operators in the capital city, where activities of the okada riders have been suspended,” Akinmade said.

    The statement added that the ban on ticketing activities by the operators was still in force, warning that operators should guide against falling prey to the activities of illegal ticket handlers who have been duping unsuspecting motorcycle operators under the guise of working for outlawed bodies.

    It enjoined the operators to maintain the peace and cooperate with government in its determination to ensure they have a regularised and effective mode of operation.

  • Ondo to resolve ban on okada operation

    Ondo to resolve ban on okada operation

    THE Ondo State government has signified its intention to resolve the suspension of operation of commercial motorcyclists in the state capital, Akure.

    Its Commissioner for Information, Kayode Akinmade, who said this, added that the state government would meet this week to deliberate on the report of the  committee  set up to look into the issue.

    He added that the state would  come up with recommendations expected to guarantee a proper and regulated operation of the commercial motorcyclists.

    Akinmade said activities of the operators would be reviewed, stressing that every motorcycle plying the state’s roads must be duly registered to enable easy identification.

    He said government was determined to arrest the trend of using motorcycle to kidnap and snatch bags of defenceless citizens.

    The commissioner said: “There is the need for the okada operators to be properly identified. The state government wants them to perfect their papers  and be well-regulated. That is what government is working to achieve and the cooperation of  everyone is needed in this regard.

    “Okada operators are part of the society and they deserve to earn their living, but they must do that in accordance with the law of the land.”

    The suspension  of the okada operations followed a protest by the operators  over the directive that their motorcycles should be properly registered.

  • Okada rider docked for ‘assaulting’ colleague`s daughter

    A commercial motorcyclist, Kamaru Manihouri was  arraigned at the Tinubu Magistrate’s Court for assaulting his colleague‘s daughter, Rofia Badmus.

    Manihouri, who resides at Aloba Street, Lagos Island is facing a two-count charge of assault and conducting himself in a manner that could breach public peace.

    The Police Prosecutor, Sergeant Andohemba Koti said the accused person committed the offence on August 1 at the complainant’s residence on Adeniji Adele area of Lagos Island.

    Koti said the complainant had informed the police on the same day that the accused went to her residence, beat her up, and inflicted injuries on her.

    The prosecutor said the accused took the action out of annoyance when he discovered that the complainant could not tell him where her father had gone to when he came looking for him.

    “He came looking for her father and when the complainant said she could not ascertain his whereabouts and asked him to return later, he took that as rudeness, got furious, slapped her and inflicted injuries on her,’’ he said.

    He said that the offence contravened Sections 191 and 166 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State 2011.

    The accused pleaded not guilty.

    Magistrate L.A Owolabi granted the accused N40,000 bail with two sureties in like sum and adjourned the case until August 20.

  • Ondo Okada riders protest govt policies

    Ondo Okada riders protest govt policies

    Members of the Amalgamated Commercial Motorcycle Riders Association of Nigeria (ACOMORAN) in Ondo State marched on the streets yesterday to protest “government’s harsh transport policies”.

    The protest, which lasted for several hours, paralysed economic activities in the state capital, Akure.

    Last week, the Ministry of Transport gave a week ultimatum to commercial motorcycle operators to obtain their commercial number plates.

    The ultimatum expired on Wednesday, prompting security operatives to arrest any Okada operator, who has not changed from private to commercial number plate.

    Some of the protesters drove dangerously round the town as early as 8am.

    Others blocked the entrance to the Ministry of Works, where the Ministry of Transport is also located.

    Some aggrieved cyclists said they could not obtain another number plate since it was the State Licensing Office that issued the ones they were using.

    They maintained that it was wicked and exploitative for the government to impose on them the Residency Card, Kaadi Igbe Ayo, at N2,000.

    They said they would not obtain the card since they do not know its usefulness.

    A protester, Dele Oyeyemi, bemoaned the manner in which commercial motorcyclists were being treated in the state.

    His words: “Last week, we heard the information on radio that any motorcycle with private number plate would be arrested. The manner in which Okada riders are being treated in the state was bad.

    “What we are trying to achieve with the protest is to make Governor Olusegun Mimiko realise that his administration’s policies are killing us.

    “I was arrested yesterday at Arakale Road on the number plate issue. They’ve been seizing our motorcycles and collecting money before releasing them.”

    Another protester, Akinlade Temitayo, who claimed to be a graduate of the Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo, said: “Being an Okada man is not easy. If actually they want to ban motorcycles in Ondo State, let them go ahead. Then we will know what next to do. What we want is to be using the number plates we are already using.

    “We don’t want anybody to harass us on the roads. It is not easy to go to the licensing office to collect another number at N6,500.”

    Efforts by the state chairman of ACOMORON, Jimoh Obabiolorun, to pacify the protesters failed as they insisted on seeing the Commissioner for Transport, Nicholas Tofowomo.

    A lawyer, Morakinyo Ogele said: “The Ondo State government has been put on notice that this order of obtaining new number plates is another way of burdening the riders”.

  • Enforcement of law on okada, tricycle begins

    Enforcement of law on okada, tricycle begins

    Are you a commercial motorcyclist (okada) or tricyclist? Do you know that you risk a three-year imprisonment and the forfeiture of your vehicle if caught riding on prohibited roads and bridges in Lagos State?

    From today, it is an offence to ride without a helmet (for bicycle riders), or to ride on unapproved roads – such as highways and bridges – as enforcement of the Traffic Law begins.

    Governor Akinwumi Ambode on June 25 gave the leadership of the two unions 21 days to educate their members on the need to leave the roads or face prosecution. The ultimatum expired last Thursday, but was extended to Tuesday because of the Sallah holidays.

    According to the law, penalty for riding against traffic or on prohibited routes is three-year imprisonment, which may be commuted to community service and the forfeiture of the vehicle.

    A Ministry of Transportation (MoT) source said the government is ready to enforce the laws and would give the unions or operators no further notice.

    He said the government is angry at the impunity with which cyclists and tricyclists flout the laws guiding their operations.

    The Police and other security agencies, he said, had been adequately briefed to begin enforcement immediately the deadline expires.

    No further awareness would be made to prevent the operators from ganging up to thwart government’s efforts,the official said.

    He said though the motorcyclists have a right to engage in legitimate business, such must be done in accordance to the law.

    He said: “Government, realising their values and contributions to the economy, had decided that rather than an outright ban of motorcycles as a means of transportation as other states have done, their operations must be restricted to 475, out of the 9,100 road networks.”

    In line with Section 3 and Regulation 16 sub-section (4), (5), and (6) of the Road Traffic Law, commercial motorcycles are restricted from 475 of the 9,100 road networks in the state and must always wear standard crash protection helmet, and ensure same for his passenger.

    They are also banned from carrying more than one passenger, children or pregnant women. They must not operate okada beyond 8pm in Victoria Island, Ikoyi and Ikeja and beyond 10pm in other areas of the state.

    They are also barred from riding on the kerb, median or road setbacks or on opposite direction of traffic, or in any direction prohibited by law and to respect traffic laws and regulations.