- Commercial motorcyclists defy Appeal Court ruling restricting their operations on major highways and bridges
By Cosmas Omegoh
THE constant violation of the Lagos State traffic law by commercial motorcyclists (okada), and the seeming failure of the state government to stop them is getting residents worried.
Residents who ply the city’s many roads are increasingly tired of the menace of the okada riders, operating with so much recklessness, with no government operative ever near to restrain them.
An angry resident, who is unhappy with the state of affairs said some okada riders in the city operate with the gut of the gods and perform various stunts right on the roads.
These acts of sheer lawlessness, according to many residents, take place more on the popular Oshodi-Apapa, Mile 2-Badagry and some other roads they had earlier been banned from using. Most people who commute on those roads have sad tales of the impunity of okada riders that sicken the mind. The menace of this class of road users is one big chunk of headache that Lagos commuters have for long been condemned to deal with.
Now, visit any strategic spot on the aforementioned Lagos roads and see the way the okada riders conduct themselves. When they hit the roads, they are simply unstoppable, riding with gusto and having the least regard for known traffic and safety regulations.
Some Lagos residents say that they are unhappy that the state government’s occasional threat to clear them is nothing but blowing hot air.
Expectedly, this perceived failure of the government and the okada riders to maintain sanity on the roads often leads to fatalities.
On Monday, July 4, a commercial motorbike operator and his passenger were crushed by a LAGBUS bus on the Anthony-Oshodi Expressway. The duo died on the spot. Motorbike operators are actually restricted on that highway.
Not long ago, for instance, an okada rider and his passenger were killed in a gruesome manner in a crash that could have been avoided. The ugly incident happened at Berger Suya Bus Stop, close to the Kirikiri Bridge across the Mile 2-Apapa Expressway.
According to an eyewitness, a passenger, who was apparently headed for Apapa on that fateful afternoon, had hailed the okada rider, urging him to take him to his destination. The rider, desperate to hit the alternate side of the expressway, sought to go through a small opening on the road median where a streetlight pole once was. Without watching for the approaching traffic, he recklessly launched his bike unto the expressway and set up a spectacle seconds later.
Pronto, a petrol tanker driver, pressing for one of the tank farms in Apapa to lift fuel, ran over both the rider and the passenger, crushing them instantly. Apparently, the driver never expected that the okada rider would do what he did at that point. A source said many who rushed to the scene froze when they saw the tragedy. They were amazed at the dismembered body parts of the victims and at their blood, flowing on the highway.
It was part of the effort to forestall ugly incidences like this that the Lagos State government in 2012, approached the state House of Assembly to enact the Lagos State Road Traffic Law. A section of that law prohibits commercial motorcyclists from plying 475 out of an estimated 9,000 roads and bridges in the state.
But unhappy with that law, the okada riders, under the umbrella of the All Nigerians Autobike Commercial Owners and Workers Association (ANACOWA), besieged a Lagos High Court, contending that the law violated the fundamental right of movement of its members. After months of legal arguments, the court ruled in favour of the state government, prompting ANACOWA to proceed to the appellate court.
But on Thursday, June 24, the state government smiled again when the Appeal Court spoke emphatically in its favour. With that, the government finally brushed aside the unrelenting challenge of commercial motorcycle riders against the legality of Section 3 of the Lagos State Road Traffic Law 2012. The court ruled that the legality of the said law was not in doubt. It also said that the said traffic law was enacted with the overall intent of protecting the interest of the public, by providing environmental sanity reasonably justifiable for a society like Lagos State.
A little before the Appeal Court gave its ruling, the Lagos State government had reiterated its resolve to strictly enforce some of the extant laws of the state, especially the traffic law. The state governor, Mr. Akinwumi Ambode, made the declaration at one of the monthly Security Council meetings with heads of all security agencies in the state.
The state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Fatai Owoseni, who spoke on behalf of the governor said: “Yes, I can tell you that we specifically considered the need to improve on enforcement of the laws of the state, especially the areas where we have been having challenges with members of the public with regard to enforcement. Specifically, I’m talking about the street trading and the restriction of commercial motorcyclists to certain areas.”
But many days after the Appeal Court ruling, some residents expected that state government would follow up on its victory by decisively restricting the activities of the okada riders on the main roads.
When, therefore, this reporter launched out recently to see if there were enforcement and compliance with the traffic law, all that was there to see was the usual chaos and lawlessness. For the okada operators, it was business as usual, as they were all in the heat of their act, carrying on with little regard to any safety and traffic standards.
At the Second Rainbow Bus Stop on the Oshodi-Mile Expressway, the okada riders were on top of their game. Scores of them were seen soliciting passengers right on the main road. They showed no knowledge of the Appeal Court judgment secured by the state government that had finally banned them from operating at the point they were. Whereas some were right at the edge of the express road, a large number of them sat on their bikes at the service lane, wooing potential passengers.
Then at the popular Mile 2, the okada operators were as usual dominant. Because of the perennial, chaotic traffic situation on the road to Apapa, many who are going that way prefer the okada, as their quick means of commuting.
Having seen the window of opportunities open to them, the okada riders are, therefore, ever present at the spot, beckoning to their passengers. They make a lot of more money, probably much more than they would have made if they were plying the areas designated for them.
Right there at the spot many now call ‘Festac side’ at Mile 2, many okada riders gathered, unfazed about any form of legal victory won by the Lagos State government. At the back of their minds, they knew that from time to time, policemen storm the area to raid and cart away their bikes. This they later redeem with huge sums of money.
In a brief encounter, one of the operators, who identified himself as Musa, spoke to Daily Sun in smattering English. “I don’t know anything about any court ruling,” he said, maintaining a steady watch for prospective customers. “Please, tell the Lagos State government to better leave us alone. When they are not after us, it is the police who come here to pack our bikes. They should all leave us alone to look for our daily bread.”
On the road to Orile, the okada riders gathered, waiting for passenger who needed their services. On the Apapa side of the area, they were there too, doing brisk business. They usually ride against the traffic. Even the passengers they convey are unmindful of the dangers they are exposed to when they go head-on with heavy-duty vehicles and fuel tankers, ferrying goods or fuel from the wharf.
For the okada riders, operating on the Mile 2 – Badagry Road on which they were banned from operating, the name of the trade is utter recklessness. While exploiting the advantage presented by the gruesome gridlock that characterises the road, okada operators ferry their passengers from point to point for instant cash. Many residents of Alaba International Market and Ojo area, who loathe being held in the traffic for hours are their main customers.
However, fatalities often occur on the road. For instance, recently at Festac First Gate Bus stop, the reporter witnessed a bike operator and his passenger, as they hit a pedestrian who attempted to cross the ever-busy road. The trio fell agonisingly to the ground, writhing in pain but missed being crushed by an approaching vehicle.
Then in the evening, the same okada riders mass atop the Mile 2 Bridge, calling out to passengers, going home as far as Ojo and beyond. They literally seize an entire lane of the road and subsequently narrow down what is left. In fact, in their desperation, nothing deters them. Even the presence of policemen a few strides away does not bother them a bit. Their presence at that spot, especially during the late evening rush hour, contributes unfairly to the agony daily experienced by motorists around Mile 2.
A city resident, Akin Oyeleke, said what was needed now to reduce the menace of okada riders in the state was the will to commence strict enforcement of the traffic law.
“There is no way Lagosians can do without okada riders in their day-to-day lives,” he said. “They are now more like a necessary evil. However, what the government ought to be doing now is to ensure that it strictly insists on compliance with the Lagos State Traffic law 2012, as a way of curbing their excesses. “Anything less than enforcement of the law amounts to paying lip service to the real issue.
“Remember during the last elections, politicians in the state used the okada riders to win elections. Driving them away now might appear that they, the politicians, are biting the fingers that fed them.
“However, the truth of the matter is that okada riders pose serious challenges to the rest of us who have cause to be on the roads often.”