More than 24 hours after the ban on commercial motorcycle operations in some parts of Lagos State, commuters have continued to hail the government for the bold initiative.
Though many trekked to their destinations, yet they said the absence of okada on the roads made more sense as the roads were free of their menace.
For the second day running, okada operators were off the roads within the Ikeja metropolis, Ojodu and Onigbongbo LCDAs, and all the stretch of the expressway from Ikeja Along to Mushin on the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway.
At Ogba, Agege, Orile-Agege and other suburbs, they were also off the road on Thursday, as detachments of police, men of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and other security agents were battle ready at strategic roads.
Same development was prevalent at Iganmu and Apapa, where commuters trekked to the ports as the buses were in short supply.
Commuters who spoke with our correspondent thanked the government for the effort to sanitise the road.
Chukwudi Adindu said: “I never believed the enforcement could be this successful, but what I see today indicates that much can be achieved when the government demonstrates the will to enforce its laws. My fear however is sustaining this tempo because I do not want to see the okada riders back on the road again.”
Another commuter Michael Forosele said the total ban was a welcome development as it would rest fear of accidents, and especially crime, in the state. He, however, lamented that with the alternatives not yet fully circulated, Lagosians may continue to experience some hardship moving round the city.
He said the government would need to release more First and Last Mile buses to improve the shuttle experience of commuters.
Another commuter, Remilekun Yusuf, a public worker, said many of the okada riders are moving out of Lagos to border communities between Lagos and Ogun State to avoid arrest, prosecution and eventual impounding of their motorcycle.
“What we need actually is a statewide total ban on okada operations. The pilot phase in the past 24 hours is successful, but let the government inject more alternatives across the state and expand the ban to include other local governments not yet covered,” she added.
The Nation
