The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State for next year’s election, Dr AbdulAzeez Olajide Adediran, on Saturday visited the homes of AbdulLateet Kolapo and Osinachi Ndukwe, owners of vehicles seized for violating traffic laws and auctioned by the State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), and gifted them an undisclosed amount of money to assist them to start a new life.
This was as he assured them and other Lagosians not to lose hope, which he promised his government was bringing if elected into office, as the next governor of the state, come 2023.
However, the PDP standard bearer reiterated that he was not opposed to having traffic laws and regulations in place or encouraging anybody driving against traffic, but said what he was against is any law that takes away people’s means of livelihood and leaving them and all their dependant helpless and hopeless.
AbdulLateet and Osinachi were among the owners of over 134 seized vehicles which were auctioned last Thursday by the LASTMA, a development that led Osinachi and his mother, a 49- year-old widow, to openly weep as they begged for a price reduction, while their only vehicle bought at the rate of N1.8 million on hired purchase was being auctioned for N450,000.
The governorship candidate, who is popularly called Jandor, accompanied by his running mate, Funke Akindele- Bello, while speaking at the residence of AbdulLateef, located on Oyewuwo Street, Mushin, pointedly said his visit was not to show support for violation of traffic laws, but to let it be known that it was not appropriate to have laws in place that would completely take away one’s livelihood, and also to bring message of hope to Lagosians ahead of 2023.
Adediran, while promising to review some of the laws on ground, which he described as punitive, also decried a situation whereby markets were announced closed “just because one individual or two committed a sin.”
“Our visit here today is not that we are against the law on traffic, not that we are against it.
“If government makes law, it should not be that that would take away one’s means of livelihood. That is why we are here. We came here to tell you that you should not lose hope, that a government is coming in Lagos, a government that would not just lock markets just because of one individual or two committed a sin. Our government if voted into office in next year would look into some of the laws that are punitive and review them,” he said.
“Why should one’s livelihood be taken away from him just because he dove against traffic and not that he killed or committed heinous crime? If they take your means of livelihood, how do they went you to survive?” he queried.
“Government should know that people heckling for a livelihood have a lot of dependants. If anybody commits an offence, it should not be that his means of livelihood should be taken away from him.
“Yes, there should be penalty, but not his means of livelihood should be taken away completely from him,” he contended.
The PDP chieftain also repeated same message, while speaking at the Ogba, Lagos residence of Osinachi, promising a better deal for Lagosians if elected as next governor of Lagos State in 2023 General Election.
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