The Government of Cross River State yesterday (12th January 2007) indefinitely banned the operations of the commercial motorcycles in the state capital, Calabar (comprising Calabar Municipal and Calabar South Local Government Areas) of Cross River State.

The ban followed an arson attack on the Atakpa Police Station (Close to the popular Watt Market) in Calabar South. The arson was the climax of a series of domestic disturbances perpetrated by the motorcycle operators, who refused to pay the mandatory registration fee of about N13,000.00 to the Motorcycle task force monitoring team. The registration was instituted and authorized by the State Government and was to cover the cost of registration for a year and also the cost of a reflective riding coat, and helmet. This money was to be paid in installments over a period of 6 months. And was supposed to have ended by October last year.

The Motorcycle operators however asked for a 3months extension of the deadline to enable them meet up. However the state government noticed some foot dragging as the January 5th deadline drew close and decided to clamp down on the offenders. This sparked a state of civil unrest culminating in the Arson and the ban.

Well what are your views on this, having heard all what happened who do you think is at fault and why?
a. The Government
b. The Motorcycle operators

The useless lawlessness OKADA operators is at fault, you don't go blazing the police station and no one is pointing out the perpetrators and expect no repercussion. it's about time people start thinking before acting in Nigeria. they disobey traffic signals and operates with no insurance.

I personally dont like the idea of Okada in any state capital. I will rather prefer mass transit with big buses. Cos okada is noisy, aids crime, makes a city look un-organised. I just dont like it.

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Poor Okada men what will they do now

Hehe. People are so gullible. Obviously, the 13,000 naira registration fee is what the government is concerned about. The okada riders played into their trap by engaging in violence, but the government initiated it.

The government shouldn't demand money from okada riders, period. This is pure extortion. Don't be decieved!

Poor Okada men what will they do now

What people do when they are deprived of their means of livelihood? They'll go into crime, of course.

Seun:

Hehe. People are so gullible. Obviously, the 13,000 naira registration fee is what the government is concerned about. The okada riders played into their trap by engaging in violence, but the government initiated it.

The government shouldn't demand money from okada riders, period. This is pure extortion. Don't be decieved!
What people do when they are deprived of their means of livelihood? They'll go into crime, of course.

Erm why do people pay money to register their business isnt that extortion too?

It's bad enough people dont pay tax (?), now they have been told to pay a registration fee for:

was to cover the cost of registration for a year and also the cost of a reflective riding coat, and helmet.

people jsut want to make money all in the name of capitalism, dem no wan pay kobo

They pay to buy their motorcycles. They pay for fuel and for repairs.

I know how it feels, I am here in Abuja. I know how it was when we had to fight with Okada not until they were banned from operation sept last year, Now come to Abuja and see an okada-less community. The city looks habitable.
Imagine in Lagos they were also banned from operations after 7p.m.
Interesting enough Lagosian felt that was the end of the world. I walked through bariga, and some busy places in lag and to my amazement after 7p.m Lagos traffic takes a new look without the bike guys. I have not been in Lagos in the past few weeks but lets imagine a Nigeria without bikes? I am sure the highest rate of accidents in the country is caused by okada, before we all become handicapped
Let the Okada riders become toosh bus drivers and conductors. let them become traffic and garage moderators. What a Nija we go dey live.

I know how it feels, I am here in Abuja. I know how it was when we had to fight with Okada not until they were banned from operation sept last year, Now come to Abuja and see an okada-less community. The city looks habitable.
Imagine in Lagos they were also banned from operations after 7p.m.
Interesting enough Lagosian felt that was the end of the world. I walked through bariga, and some busy places in lag and to my amazement after 7p.m Lagos traffic takes a new look without the bike guys. I have not been in Lagos in the past few weeks but lets imagine a Nigeria without bikes? I am sure the highest rate of accidents in the country is caused by okada, before we all become handicapped
Let the Okada riders become toosh bus drivers and conductors. let them become traffic and garage moderators. What a Nija we go dey live.

was to cover the cost of registration for a year and also the cost of a reflective riding coat, and helmet.

Hmmm. This is just a free meal for the contractor hand-picked by the government officials to supply those materials. Why not just educate people who use okadas often to buy their own helmets? I don't know, I don't know.

so when you are goin to work you carry your briefcase, helmet, reflective jacket, and in case you have a kid you have to pick up from school after work you carry an extra helmet hmm nice

road tax
insurance
passenger insurance

by the time they include these one you go hear wen!

Does this fee cover an additional helmet for the passengers? No. So what's the point exactly?

so when you are goin to work you carry your briefcase, helmet

Yes. Why not? Is it not your responsibility to look after your life? Can someone else really do that for you?

I for one am in favor of okada. Despite how "dangerous" or "noisy" they are, the fact is that given our road conditions, it is, to me, the most convenient way to get from point A to point B. Besides, how else do I, coming from abroad, get to experience first-hand the smells of Nigeria?

On a more serious note, as Seun has stated, it's all about the revenue. Trust me, if they had volunteered to pay N20K as opposed to the sanctioned N13K and the station was torched, worse-case, only the alleged perpetrators would have been arrested. The govt is just using the torching as a convenient excuse.

If okada is banned in uyo or calabar, trust me, those economies will grind to an already-in-place halt. I dare say at least 20 - 30% of the citizens of those cities put food on their family's tables via this means. And as Seun has said, those who claim they aid crime are ill-informed. If they are out of work, guess what they might venture into next? Yep, you got it

If you deem them dangerous, then you owe it to yourself to take your (hopefully) hard-earned money and spend it on a more expensive, alternate mode of transportation instead of whining

At the beginning, it was terrible on the day of the ban i was attacked by some hoodluums with bottles at yellowduke at 11am when i was in taxi. it wasnt fun i had to walk twice from unical gate to the stadium twice last week i swear i was so fagged out last week. but funny enough i a getting used to this new transport method and the town is taking a new look. I am okay with it but some things need to be done. New buses, new routes need to be covered by the buses/ taxis eg Mary Slessor.

Granted it is getting tough to move around, such hardship shd motivate them to say "how can i take advantage of this situation, come up with an alternative form of transport and make money" as opposed to "how i go do now?"

This is similar to when the communist countries were switching to free markets. Hyperinflation was rampant at first but as things began to settle down, calm returned and some of them are some of the most rapidly growing economies around.

In the end, private enterprise, and not government, should take the lead in this approach. As a pple we need to end the disease of relying on government at every beck and call.

Yea we need to stop relying on govt for everything but the people shouldnt be allowed to make regulations or else greedy capitalist _wannabe will exploit the situation all the name of creating employement

Seun:

Hehe. People are so gullible. Obviously, the 13,000 naira registration fee is what the government is concerned about. The okada riders played into their trap by engaging in violence, but the government initiated it.

The government shouldn't demand money from okada riders, period. This is pure extortion. Don't be decieved!
What people do when they are deprived of their means of livelihood? They'll go into crime, of course.

Here are the salient facts concerning the issue.

The Okada Riders were given over three months notice to comply with the government directive to regulate their trade.

There has been an increased violence in Calabar especially at night whereby Okada riders perpetrate criminal acts of beating up passengers and stealing their mobile phones and handbags, thereby spreading a morbid fear of staying out late at night in Calabar.

90% of accidents in Calabar are caused by Okada riders-they are very reckless and do not obey basisc traffic rules.

The eradication of Okada cyclist from Calabar was a necessary evil in order to compliment the high-rising status of Calabar as Nigeria's premier tourist location.

80% of Okada cyclists in Calabar are from Akwa Ibom State origin; Akwa Ibom have regulated their Okada cyclist operations, hence the Okada operators in Calabar should comply with best practice  regulations for the industry.

For the first time in my life Calabar was looking very very serene and opulent due to the absence of Okada cyclists, albeit at a price-commuters had to trek long distances in their absence. This standard has to be maintained if Calabar is to be the cynosure of Tourism in Nigeria.

The CRS Government made an administrative blunder by not releasing the State owned new Taxi's in time to coincide with the withdrawal of Okada cyclists operation in Calabar.

In Dubai, in order to support the Tourist industry the taxi service is operated by the U.A.E Government , they procure and employ Taxi's and the Drivers to run the whole transport service efficiently. One Taxi Driver in Dubai even told me that after every 4-5 years their Taxi's  (Toyota Avensis brands) are written-off and new one's are purchased by the Government in a bid to maintain the high level of service. If this is what Donald Duke had in mind, then we are behind him.

Most of the violence that occured as a response to the Government directives were not done by the Okada cyclist themselves but by Area Boys/Hoodlums who hijacked the situation to their own advantage.

When I grew up in Calabar in the 1970's every cyclist by then had a Helmet with a spare one for his passenger-what's new or wrong about reinforcing the law now?

@ Seun I totally disagree with u!!!

The government is trying to organise the okada business which has been the cause of crime and accidents in various state capitals. The fee is supposed to cover helments for passengers as well and uniforms so crime can be traced.

They just dont like the idea of being organised, the okadas and they need to be so that anything happens, there can be responsibility given to a traced perpetrator.

This will not clean out the rotten pracrtices some okadas indulge in but at the same time it reduces it to a curbed amount. They had it coming

Duke is trying to make the capital organised; he has gone a long way in it and he is encouraged to carry on!!!!

@ my2cent. the okada business brings food on the table but have u ever seen what happens if one of them is involved in an accident in which they are obviously at fault, The car driver WILL be mobbed by the other okadas.

This can only be curbed if there is a face on every okada driver and that is what the government is trying to do. It is not extortion of any form.

They should pay and get organised or they go home period. Imagine arson!! Risk the lives of innocents because they are angry with organizastion; they do so cos they know they cant be traced and it is unacceptable

Seun:

They pay to buy their motorcycles. They pay for fuel and for repairs.

Taxi drivers all over the country buy their taxis, pay for fuel and repairs and they have been organised by the government why should the okadas be left off

U need to see the nuisance caused by the okadas to re-align ur mind on this. go to the University of calabar teaching hospital, I heard ther is even going to be a section for okada accidents.

because they arent organised, they are unruly and rough on roads knowing that if they cause an accident others will fight for them;
rubbish if they cant pay, let them go pay for shops instead and make the same amount they do when the are in transport

By banning the Okadas completely, the govt is only pouring sand in their garri. Completely disagree with their effort to rid the cyclists of their business. What the government could do should be to educate the public and encourage the Okada drivers, alias "AkaUke" to invest in an helmet for themselves and their passengers. For one to state that they are responsible for 90 percent of accidents in Nigeria is not true. In Lagos, the molue drivers are notorious for driving at a high speed, and these buses rarely come to a stand-still for the passengers to disembark at their location. The passengers jump out, while the buses are driving to the next locale. Have they been banned? No? Despite the rickety structure of the cars, notorious for exhuming poisonous fumes in the already polluted air of Lagos cities.

And another excuse that the elimination of okadas in Calabar would attract more tourists into the city of Calabar is not true. We don't have to adopt every single policies implemented in Europe or Dubai. The Okadas also embody the Calabar spirit and can be juxtaposed along with the new adoptions of the tourist culture. Some former governor of Lagos State, I think Raji Rasaki demolished Maroko, a settlement that was a haven for the underclass in the society. He justified his actions, because an international visitor was coming to Lagos state. So to avoid embarrasment, Maroko had to go.

Would the city of Chicago tear down Cabrini Green housing project if Obasanjo was planning a visit to Illinois?No. This dangerous trend would only breed poverty and also lead to an increase in armed robbery.

Trust me; the kind of okada and their rough way of driving will not encourage tourism.

And who told U education will help. The government has tried that lots of times with different issues it does not work. It can work in developed countries because thhey 8are already organised

This is the organising that is needed in calabar! They mu8st be organised! Do they think if they go into trading they wont pay government levies? The must meet up with government demands or go to another state period!

Now, would they be enough taxis in Calabar to meet the needs of the populace? I like Okada because of its accessibility. Life would be quite difficult now, if you don't have a car. Another one, just think of this, the chances of being involved in a car accident is higher than that of Okada. Okada can be averted, because you can quickly step down from the back seat. In a car, with an erratic driver, you are almost trapped especially if you are sitting in the front seat, along with two other passengers who have been squeezed in for more profit.

For those of you who live in Calabar, do you approve of the ban?

Our government needs to learn to stick to it's primary responsibility: protection of freedom.

How do you protect freedom? By using force to limit the activities enemies of peace and freedom like armed robbers and burglars, thugs, murderers, kidnappers, rapists, domestic abusers, et cetera.

When the government, instead of protecting freedom, chooses to becomes an enemy of freedom, then there's a problem. (This problem is not unique to Nigeria, though. Afterall George Bush is also busy mis-"managing" America.)

If some okada riders are nighttime robbers, catch them and prosecute them. It's painfully obvious that banning the innocent will only lead to more crime. One would expect better from the famous Governor Duke.

I said it before and I will say it again:

There are many modes of land transporation there. Pick your own and leave the others to choose what they want. Don't use the government to promote your own personal agenda.

If the pple (mind you I said "pple" and not government ) decide at some point they don't want okada, then they will vote with their pocket and choice.

The power is, and should be, in the pple, not government.

my2cents:

I said it before and I will say it again:

There are many modes of land transporation there. Pick your own and leave the others to choose what they want. Don't use the government to promote your own personal agenda.

If the people (mind you I said "people" and not government ) decide at some point they don't want okada, then they will vote with their pocket and choice.

The power is, and should be, in the people, not government.

The people from a village from somewhere in middle belt of Nigeria who have refused to embrace civilization and put on cloths, Government will as well wait for when they vote to start wearing cloths.

That's their lifestyle, and if they appear happy and contented with it, so be it. The adage, "Where ignorance is bliss , " definitely applies to their lifestyle. Back in Naija, I read about a certain tribe in Naija where the inhabitants of the clan stuck to the basic aspects of life, and eschewed modernity. However, their lifestyle was met with a sense of mockery from these journalists. But must everybody conform to the lifestyles of the western world?

http://crossriverstate.com/state%20news%20page_acaa33.htm

This article shows some of the new buses brought in. I totally agree with the temporary ban. whatever is gained by using these dangerous bikes is lost in medical bills and pain cuased by deaths from okada accidents

Da, Calabar ayaya etieti. Obong, thanks for the link. From what I read on the newspage, I think the ban is just temporary and would be repealed once the Okada drivers adhere to the governor's request that they should have two helmets and also be outfitted with a vest to reduce the number of fatalities in the city. Not a bad law at all. I endorse it. Okada drivers should comply with it.

wow, those are some neat buses!! i saw the new "taxi" on NTA, that state has a bright future!
only if people agree change is good _{greedy capitalist alway hate government regulations}

as with all things naija, letz hope that those buses will be properly maintained, especially after Duke leaves office. It is one thing to buy, and another to maintain. I draw my observations from the one-time AKTC. They set the standard at the time for state transportation but where is it now?

as far as okada is concerned, again, dangerous or not, it is my choice to use them. Based on the info I got this evening (on ground ), the dudes had a whole year to comply and refused. They were even offered an opportunity to pay quarterly, yet they refused. The worst of all is that they burnt down a police station. Based on this info, I am in support of the ban, however the pple will suffer. Okada goes to places taxis (or a bus that size) won't. Okada can get you from point A to B quicker. Rather than demonize these guys, I say we educate them. I am sure they can be made to drive a little better only if there are *enforcable* laws. I believe part of the money (again, based on what my sources told me this evening ) they were being charged was to go for protective gear. Even in the states, motorcycles are regarded as dangerous. Consequently, the authorities have imposed so many rules on this mode of transport that it is plain ridiculous, not to mention that the insurance for a motorbike is what I would personally consider suicidal. It's all about *enforcable* rules folks.

Sure, I understand they are dangerous, but again I say, I prefer to use them and it is my choice, knowing fully all disadvantages.