- vows to cripple Okada operation in 2024
The Lagos State Taskforce has impounded 174 motorcycles popularly known as Okada in raids on Lagos Taskforce raids Lagos Island, Berger/Grammar School and Abule Egba.
The agency in a statement on Sunday vowed to bring the operations of recalcitrant Okada operators to a complete halt as it carries out the week-long raid across various parts of the metropolis.
The week-long exercise was led by the chairman of the Lagos Taskforce, CSP Shola Jejeloye who vowed to end their activities along some highways in the State.
“We have taken it upon ourselves to end Okada operations in the State and we are putting all mechanisms in place to ensure we achieve this goal. There is a ban on their activities along selected routes and local government areas in Lagos therefore they should not be allowed to operate as they please,” Jejeloye said.
He noted that the raid on the Abule Ado axis saw them impound 174 motorcycles while 50 motorcycles were impounded in the Lagos Island raid.
In the raid on Berger/ Grammar School, 50 motorcycles were impounded while 70 motorcycles were impounded in the Abule Egba axis.
Jejeloye warned uniform men and urged them to obey extant rules and regulations of the State regarding Okada operations or be prosecuted.
“There will be no sacred cows in the enforcement of Okada operations in the State therefore any uniform man caught conveying passengers on a bike for commercial purposes will be thoroughly dealt with. We should be the ones setting the right examples not breaking them. It will no longer be business as usual,” Jejeloye noted.
He added that stubborn Okada operators should not test the might of enforcement compliance of the Lagos Taskforce as it is more determined to eradicate their activities for good.
“Any operator found wanting will be severely dealt with according to the laws of the State,” he said.
“It is our resolve in 2024 to ensure that the terminal end of every enforcement is the court, therefore, the fixed mindset of all environmental and traffic violators who think they can get away with every infraction through “man know man” or godfatherism will not be tolerated. Enough is enough.”
Jejeloye enjoined Lagosians to work with the government, Lagos Taskforce and other agencies in ensuring that mischief makers do not derail the vision and mission of the state government as enshrined in the THEMES PLUS agenda of the present administration.
He appealed to well-meaning residents to desist from patronising okada operators to make our roads safe, hazard-free and motorable for all.
