Lagos State Wednesday said the operations of commercial motorcyclists have been totally banned in six local governments in the state.
Lagos State governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said no commercial motorcyclists would be allowed to operate in any part of Ikeja, Surulere, Eti-Osa, Lagos Mainland, Lagos Island and Apapa local councils from June 1.
“This is the phased banning that we are going to be embarking on so that others will know that in a short while it is either they get out or look for something else to do,” Sanwo-Olu said at a meeting with police area commanders and DPOS at the Lagos House, Ikeja.
The new directive from the governor appears to be a follow up to the February 2020 restriction placed on the activities of these commercial motorcyclists in these areas.
Sanwo-Olu said the state government took the decision in line with the State’s Transport Sector Reform Law of 2018 to immediately address the chaos and menace created by the operations of Okada in the listed areas.
He told the police to enforce the order without compromise.
The Governor said, “After a critical review of our restriction on Okada activities in the first six Local Government Areas where we restricted them on February 1, 2020, we have seen that the menace has not abated. We are now directing a total ban on Okada activities across the highways and bridges within these six Local Government and their Local Council Development Areas, effective from June 1, 2022.
“This is a phased ban we are embarking on this period, and we expect that within the short while when this ban will be enforced, Okada riders in other places where their activities are yet to be banned can find something else to do. We have given the notice now and we expect all commercial motorcycles plying the routes in the listed councils and areas to vacate the highways before enforcement begins. The enforcement will be total.”
