The Lagos State Government has reiterated its decision to ban okada operations as a form of transportation and assured that the move was made to protect the lives and property of locals.
Beginning on September 1, 2022, the prohibition will be enforced in four new local governments: Kosofe, Oshodi-Isolo, Shomolu, and Mushin Local Government. Ikosi-Isheri, Agboyi-Ketu, Isolo, Ejigbo, Bariga, and Odi-Olowo are the impacted LCDAs.
The State Government has made alternatives available that would lessen the impact of the restriction on passengers and commercial motorcyclists, the Commissioner for Transportation, Dr. Frederic Oladeinde, said during a news conference held in the Bagauda Kaltho Press Center.
As a responsive administration, Oladeinde said, “We are not abandoning the impacted passengers who use these okadas stranded without any workable means of transportation.”
The Ministry of Wealth Creation and Employment, the Office of Civic Engagement, the Office of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), and the Ministry of Agriculture are just a few of the government organisations he urged the riders to utilise for their own empowerment.
The Commissioner outlined the services offered by the agencies, including agricultural youth empowerment initiatives, financing for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises, internships, and training in vocational skills.
Oladeinde insisted that the enforcement of the ban would be consolidated and that there would be no wiggle room, despite the fact that the First and Last Mile Bus Transport Scheme, the BRT Scheme, the Lagos e-hailing taxi scheme (LAGRIDE), and other sustainable modes of transportation were developed to improve simple transportation.
Oladeinde pleaded with the people to obey the law, warning that anybody found guilty might face three years in jail for both riders and passengers.
The bikes that are confiscated would also be destroyed, he warned.
“We beg the general people to cooperate since both the riders and passengers are susceptible to three years jail if both are detected, and that bike will be impounded and crushed in public,” he said.
In response to a query on the potential for a fine for guilty riders and passengers, Oladeinde said that the choice would be up to the court of law.
The Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, said earlier in his comments that some okada passengers are already organising cooperatives to utilise the First and Last Ride buses that the State has made accessible as alternatives.
He pushed the riders to break out of the rigid belief that okada was their main source of support.
Speaking alongside him, Mr. Sola Giwa, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, disclosed that the Committee on Okada Ban had met with the Union of Motorcycle Riders and requested a list of all the riders in the affected areas so they can take advantage of the alternative provisions put in place.
He said that the prohibition is starting to reduce the number of accidents and crimes committed by Okada.
In response to a different concern about traffic delays brought up by road construction, Giwa urged locals to be patient along construction routes and issued a warning to commercial vehicles to avoid driving on kerbs and against traffic.
He said that staff from the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority had been sent out to guarantee the free flow of traffic, particularly in places where work is taking place.
The spokesperson of the Lagos Commissioner of Police, CSP Elizabeth Opadunni, told Lagosians that the police was ready to enact the ban by stating that it was ready to do so.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Transportation, Mr. Kamar Olowoshago, gave his last words and thanked the Governor for giving the necessary support to make the ban effective.
He also said that the Governor is enthusiastic about anything that would help the people of Lagos.