A pro-democracy group, Committee for the Protection of Peoples Mandate (CPPM), on Sunday, commended the Lagos State government on its decision to extend the ban on activities of motorcycles, popularly called Okada, to four more Local Government (LGs) and six Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs), describing the move, which takes effect from September 1, 2022, as a “responsible response to the democratic wishes of Lagosians.”
Recalled that the Lagos State government last Thursday, at a press conference addressed jointly by the State Commissioner for Transportation, Dr Frederic Oladeinde, and his counterpart in Information and Strategy, Mr Gbenga Omotoso, announced the extension of its ban on Okada operations in four additional LGs and six LCDAs, on account of security threat and frequent road accidents associated with this mode of transportation in the state.
The affected areas are; Kosofe, Oshodi-Isolo, Somolu and Mushin Local Government Areas (LGAs), while the Development Area Councils (LCDAs) are Ikosi-Isheri, Agboyi-Ketu, Isolo, Bariga, Odi-Olowo and Ejigbo.
The state government had earlier in May this year banned the operation of Okada in six LGs and nine LCDAs, effective from June 1, 2022, following heightened crime rate and accidents, relating to this mode of transportation in Lagos State.
CPPM gave this commendation in a signed statement by its Executive Chairman, Nelson Ekujumi, saying that the fresh move, though in phases, was in people’s collective interest by a government that places premium on its primary responsibility of securing the life and property of its citizens.
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The group, which scanned through past efforts of the state government, dating back to 2006 to regulate activities of Okada because of the menace they constituted to the society, noted that the announcement of this latest ban by the Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration “came at a time the citizenry apprehension about Okada threat to public safety and security of life and property occasioned by the security challenges in the country had reached the crescendo.”
According to CPPM, the ban was widely applauded and commended across all segments of society, saying it was a necessary response of a listening government to the concerns and aspirations of its people for whom it exists to serve.
This was just as the group recalled that the administration of former Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in 2006, announced the restriction of Okada operations in the state between 7 pm and 6 am due to security threats, following spike in armed robbery operations, adding that the administration of Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN), also in 2012, enacted the Lagos State Traffic Law (2012) to regulate the activities of commercial motorcyclists (okada) as a means of public transportation because of its menace to the security of life and property of Lagosians.
It said the law prohibited the activities of Okada on major highways, bridges and designated roads.
CPPM, while throwing support for the phased ban, said available statistics obtained from relevant agencies after the enforcement of the law in the first phase ban, revealed that the crime rate had “dropped drastically, same for okada-related accidents and fatalities as well as sanity being restored to the roads which had become chaotic due to the recklessness and lawlessness of the Okada riders who had no regards for traffic laws, as they rode against traffic and knocked down pedestrians at will, injuring, maiming or killing them.”
“Most importantly, the threat to our humanity posed by Okada induced increasing crime rate crashes and jungle justice mentality of attacking, injuring and even killing their passengers over dispute in fares as attested to by the death of a sound Engineer in the Lekki axis of Lagos in May 2022, unleashing mayhem on the roads whenever one of them is involved in an accident, disregard for public and personal safety by not wearing helmets, nor provide for their passenger, knocking down pedestrians at will by riding against traffic in utter disobedience to traffic rules and regulation, attacks and killing of security operatives such as the death of CSP Kazeem Abonde, the Operations Officer of the Nigeria Police Force Lagos State Command who was killed at Ajao Estate of Lagos State for the crime of performing his statutory function of enforcing the law in September 2021, etc.
“The environmental hazard caused by the noise and air pollution of Okada is a threat to our human existence. We can go on and on about the tyranny and threat to our existence by okada as cancer which must be addressed frontally,” the pro-democracy group said.
“Based on the above analysis of the pros and cons of Okada ban, it is indisputably clear that the announcement by the Lagos State government on Thursday 18th August 2022 of the extension of the ban on Okada in four Local Governments and six Local Council Development Areas to take effect from September 1 2022, is a responsible response to the democratic wishes of Lagosians by a government that places premium on its primary responsibility of securing the life and property of its citizens and its obvious to all and sundry that this ban, though in phases, is in our collective interest for our tomorrow which is a collective responsibility,” the group declared.
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