Niger insists on ban on okada, as PDP lashes out at NUJ, Rep

Governor Babangida Aliyu of Niger State says the ban on the operations of commercial motorcyclists in Minna, the state capital, has come to stay.
A statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Danladi Ndayebo, restated the resolve of the state government to enforce the state’s traffic law with effect from January 2, 2014.
The statement, a copy of which was made available to the News Agency of Nigeria on Saturday, in Minna, said that adequate arrangements had been made to cushion the effect of the ban.
It, however, said that the state government had procured 1000 units of tricycles, popularly known as ”KEKEN TALBA”, eight units of 18-seater buses and 12 units of 100 capacity buses to ease the problem of transportation in the state.
The statement said that the ban was necessary in order to reduce the spate of road crashes involving the commercial motorcyclists in the last few years in the state.
According to the statement, about 1,000 units of tricycles are also currently being distributed to Okada operators through the Amalgamated Commercial Motorcycle Operators Association of Nigeria.
Meanwhile, the Niger State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party on Saturday lashed out at the Nigerian Union of Journalists and a member of the National Assembly for pleading on behalf of the riders.
It should be recalled that the NUJ had earlier pleaded with the government not to ban okada outrightly as it said might make most of them (riders) jobless since not every okada rider can afford the newly purchased tricycle known as Keke.
In a statement signed in Minna by its Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Hassan Saba, the party accused the member representing Chanchaga Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Umar Mohammed Bago, and the Niger State Chapter of the NUJ of inciting residents against the PDP-led government in the state.
Saba said the state government acted responsibly and in the overriding interest of the public in banning the operation of commercial motorcyclists in the state capital.
The party said: “We are convinced that the advantages of the newly introduced tricycles far outweigh those of motorcycles popularly called Okada. No responsible government would sit and watch its citizens die in avoidable road crashes involving commercial motorcyclists.
“We have waited this long to comment on this issue because we were studying all the details of the situation that led to the ban on the operation of commercial motorcyclists.
“Having concluded our painstaking investigation, we can say without equivocation that the government acted responsibly and in the interest of the public.
“Contrary to the misinformation being peddled by some mischievous individuals and groups, Okada operators would not be put out of jobs on account of the ban, because tricycles have been made available to replace the motorcycles to be phased out.
“It was cheap and uncharitable for Hon. Bago who is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to try to cash in on a serious issue for the purpose of scoring a cheap political point.”
Saba advised the NUJ to tread softly so that the respected professional body is not dragged into the murky waters of politics.
He said: “There is no need to politicise the issues on ground, because innocent Nigerlites, irrespective of their party affiliation, suffer greatly, with some, even losing their lives, often times when accidents involving motorcycles occur.”