LAGOS STATE GOVERNMENT SET TO RE-POSITION OKADA RIDERS

In the wake of the new traffic law prohibiting commercial motorcyclist popularly known as okada from 475 roads in Lagos, the State Government is working on a number of options to engage genuine commercial motorcycle operators.

This was revealed by the commissioner for transport Mr. Kayode Opeifa at the 11th Business Forum of the Lagos State University’s MBA Heritage held yesterday in Lagos. He stressed that the move is meant to give only the registered operators a new lease of life.

“We are resolute about the Road Traffic Law; there is no going back on it. But we are going to re-certify the okada operators resident in Lagos”, he said.

Opeifa explained that “the state government will soon start a registration process that will send those with skills to the skill acquisition centres established by the state government. This will make them employable or become self-employed”.

The commissioner added that the state government would re-register the operators with a view to providing the genuine ones adversely affected by the policy other job opportunities.

“Some of them could be absorbed into the LAGBUS as conductors and drivers. We also have agriculture, where some of them can also be useful. Apart from our farms in Lagos, we have bought landed property in Ogun State and Abuja, and we are going to buy more in Benue for agriculture. So, the options are there for them,” he said.

Opeifa also said some of them would be assisted to own bakeries after undertaking the needed training.

Also speaking at the occcassion, Managing Director, Megavons West Africa Limited, Dr. Rotimi Oladele, commended the state government for its efforts in transforming Lagos.

According to Mr. Oladele “there is still a need for a truly masses-oriented means of transport, which the okada business represents”. He therefore expressed the view that the okada business should be reorganised and urged the state government to re-brand it as a community transport system.

“Let us re-brand them as community transport system, license them and restrict them to their domiciliary local government areas,” he said.