By Vincent Ukpong Kalu
Saturday May 05, 2012



After toiling all day to eke out a living, operators of commercial tricycles popularly called Keke Marwa in Ojo area of Lagos, now sleep with one eye closed, leaving the other open to monitor movements around their tricycles, which have suddenly become endangered species due to a new found love for them by robbers.

According to operators of the tricycles, over 17 of them are stolen monthly from the Ojo area of Lagos alone, a development that has sent fears among operators and businessmen that lease them out on hire purchase. Beyond the panic, the rising cases of stealing of the tricycles is also affecting business for investors who import them and operators who usually buy them between N600, 000 and N650, 000.

The frequent reports of missing Keke Marwa has also landed many operators in prison due to their inability to meet up with the payment arrangements with investors who resort to the use of law enforcement agents to arrest and prosecute operators who lose their tricycles.
A sigh of relief however came the way of the troubled operators recently when they got wind that some of their stolen tricycles were being loaded in a South East bound lorry at “I Love Jesus Garage”, in Alaba International Market, Ojo.

The operators led by Comrade Obafemi Ayejegun swiftly reported the incident at the Ojo Police Division where policemen were detailed to storm the scene where four of the tricycles were recovered and one Daniel with another suspect were arrested.

According to Ayejegun, “We got a tip off that at a garage in Alaba International market that twice in a week or weekly, Keke Marwa are loaded in South East bound lorries and that presently they were four being loaded. We promptly reported to the Ojo police to avoid confrontation if we go there on our own. Some plain- clothe policemen were sent with us to the garage and they recovered four of them about to be loaded in the lorry.”
Painting pathetic picture of what his members are passing through, the union leader, said that “ some of the operators are in prison custody in Kirikiri because their tricycles were stolen and the businessmen that gave them out on hire purchase couldn’t believe their stories, reported them to police and they were arraigned and later remanded if they couldn’t meet up with the bail conditions.”

The manager of the garage was not around when Saturday Sun visited. However, Sunday Nduka, one of the workers in the garage said “ this morning police men from Ojo police station and many people that said they were Keke marwa union officials and operators came here and asked who parked the four Kekes here. We showed the police the boy that was loading the lorry and they arrested him.” Nduka denied that the garage is where stolen Kekes are transported to the East, as according to him, they have never loaded Keke at the garage before. He said those who brought the tricycles to the garage wore the uniform jackets for keke riders.
One of the victims, Jerry Chimaobi is so lucky as his missing Keke was one of the four to be taken to the East. According to him, he leased it to one Tunde, an operator. “On Easter Monday morning, Tunde came to tell me that the new Keke that was less than six weeks old has been stolen. We reported to police stations in Ojo, Ilemba Hausa and Okoko and there was no report of its whereabouts until now. I thank God for exposing the people behind this evil job”, he explained.

Some of the victims that besieged the garage told Saturday Sun their catalogue of woes and how their Kekes were stolen from where they were parked in front of their compounds, well locked and secured.
Ibrahim said he spent two weeks in Kirikiri before he could meet his bail conditions last week. According to him, he got his Keke on hire purchase and in order to meet up, when he was sick sometimes in March, he had to give it to another operator to work instead of it lying idle. “ The following day, I was told that the Keke was missing, we reported to all the police stations around and it was not found. I have only paid N120, 000 and leaving a balance of N480, 000. I was supposed to pay N600, 000. The businessman that gave it to me on hire purchase didn’t want to hear that story. He reported to the police and I was arrested and arraigned. The magistrate asked me, are you guilty or not, I said I was not guilty. I was granted bail and the matter fixed for another day. I was taken to Kirikiri prison because I couldn’t meet the bail terms it was just last week that I was released on bail”, Ibrahim narrated.

Another victim, Solomon Adeyaju, told how after the day’s work, he had parked his keke in front of his compound and only woke up in the morning to realize that it was missing. He went to all the police stations in Ojo area to report the incident. According to him, the owner has not taken him to the police as they were hoping that it would be found. “I parked in front of my house after locking the neck and chained it. They came in the night, broke the chain and took it away. I have paid N150, 000. When in the morning that I didn’t see the Keke, I went to report at the police stations.”

Narrating his own experience, Okechi who is an investor in the business said he leased his own keke on hire purchase to operators. He however added that he gave one to a young man to operate but was stolen and has not been seen since February.
A victim from Itegbi in Shibiri, Ajangbadi area of Ojo also narrated how his keke that he was yet to fix its number plate was stolen. According to him, he just bought it and had registered it but was waiting to fix the number plates before he discovered that it was missing.
While reacting to the rampant cases of missing Keke Marwa in Lagos, the state police public relations officer, Joseph Jaiyej oba, said the command does not have a record of missing tricycles as the operators have not been forth coming with such information.

http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/features/living/2012/may/05/living-05-05-2012-003.html