Tag: war

It seems unlikely that the protest by angry Okada riders last week took Lagosians by surprise. The resort to jungle tactics supposedly to protest the Lagos Traffic Law as it affected the activities of the group was largely expected. At the end of their rage, 10 Bus Rapid Transit buses were reportedly destroyed just as their anger was sufficient to guarantee hell for innocent Lagosians caught in the middle.

Much as the rights of citizens in a democracy to protest laws considered injurious to their group interest is conceded, the problem begins when such protests extend beyond the boundaries set by the law – in terms of its wanton violation of the rights of other citizens and brazen disregard for the demands of public order and safety. Such niceties were obviously lost on the hoodlums who vandalised the BRT buses and blocked the highways in the course of protest.

Even now, it must have dawned on the rioters that the battle with the state government on the restriction on Okada to designated routes is one they are unlikely to win. Surely, it cannot be that the mob desires a return to the ancien regime when they held court handing summary judgments to their hapless motorists’ victims on the highways.

Of all the factors said to have spurred the state government into taking the drastic steps to curb the menace represented by the Okada riders, the least articulated is the frightening counter-culture spawned by the rise of the business of ferrying human cargoes with motorcycles. To me, if the nation has enough reason to worry about the public safety and environment issues involved in the operation of Okadas, they have even far more to worry in that destructive culture of self-help and instant gratification that it spawned.

I am aware of the arguments that have served as self-justification for the business; that it emerged as self-help in the context of the suffocating economic environment of the 80s, something of a functional, creative response to the unprecedented unemployment and constricting opportunities faced by youths. Today, it has since become a way of life and sadly for many, an escape from the rigours and disciplines of learning a trade, and for some no hopers, a cover for criminal activities.

Like any law, the Lagos Traffic Law is far from perfect. I believe however that the law has carefully balanced the concerns for security, public safety, infrastructural and the environment with the needs of the operators. Beyond question, the law did not even pretend to be anything but a disincentive to the trade. However, it serves one important purpose of pushing the frontiers of the debate on public policy, forcing the nation to rethink the anomalous surge in a business that continues to put many innocent lives and limbs at risk.

Traditional explanations about the staying power of the business being linked to poverty and unemployment are probably as true today as they were in the 80s when they first emerged. However, it seems to me that the surge in recent years and their staying power would have to be located outside of this traditional explanation to embrace what is clearly the penchant by those involved in instant gratification. Of course, majority of those in the business are neither sufficiently educated to take advantage of the limited opportunities in the labour market, nor do they possess sellable skills to be gainfully employed by self or anyone. It has also been argued that the low capital threshold and the fact that there are very minimal barriers to entry make it doubly alluring.

There is however question that the business thrives because many involved would not even consider the option of either learning a trade or trying their hands on other worthwhile economic activities. The latter is something to worry about not only because it explains the dearth of critical skills, it is also the source of raw aggression and the accompanying group action often associated with the business.

The question of the extent of accommodation that could be allowed the operators in the rapidly transforming megacity would certainly remain “live” just as the larger issues of public policy involved would remain open to debate for some time to come. It is, I guess, a derivative of the let-live argument which attempted to rationalise the sprawling squalor of Makoko or its jungle variant in Ajegunle both of which the government in Lagos has had to confront at different time in the past. Even then, it seems that the Lagos State government is far-sighted than many would rather give it credit for at this point in time. One can only hope, at least for the sake of the future of this country that the state government, as indeed other state governments that have restricted the operators will stay the course.