It is not uncommon to find that governors who get another term in office do not perform as they did in their first term. I think the reason is simple—they take public offices to serve a parochial interest and are not really the people.

The issue of Okada (commercial motorcyclists) in Ibadan is alarming! They do not obey traffic regulations; they are usually very impatient and generally lawless; many have lost their lives or limbs to their operations. A good number of them abuse alcohol and hemp. And their rank is swelling by the minute! Unfortunately, they are becoming more daring in their disregard for traffic regulatioins. Okada rules! The irony however is that it keeps a lot of people employed. I won’t be surprised if up to 100,000 residents of Ibadan ride Okada for a living. But should the city be left on autopilot as far okada is concerned?

Some states have recognized the danger of allowing okada to operate with impunity and have partially banned its operation or established strong regulations for them. But in Ibadan, okada rules! Why? Because the transport policy of Oyo State government, or shall we say the lack of it, make them rule.

First of all, there is no working strategy to educate and effectively sanction okada riders that contravene traffic regulations. VIO, police and other road officials currently have the difficult task of stopping them on the road. When they see these officials, rather than slow down they increase their speed! They do this to prevent the officials from stopping them since they are prone to accidents when forced to stop. To prevent injuries and death the officials condone their impunity. They act like a spoilt child who threatens to become sick if the parents ever reprimand him. So in order not to have to pay visit to the hospital they refrain from disciplining him! Foolish parents! They ought to sit down to devise a way to correct the child without having to incur health expenses. The Oyo state government should also devise a strategy to sanction erring okada riders without unnecessarily exposing them to death and danger. This must be done!

Recently I pointed out to an official of the Oyo State Transport Management Agency a bottleneck on the road close to the all Important Iwo Road roundabout which was caused by okada riders who have taken over some portion of the road for taking on passengers. He said that had told them to leave the place but they would not. He complained that they don’t have full backing of the government to carry out enforcement. Poor man! Who can blame him? Who would be willing to stick his neck out for a government that won’t have your back when push comes to shove? Just a week of government-backed enforcement would end the bottleneck (at least for some months).

Then on revenue generation for the Oyo State government, there is no motorist as ‘blessed’ as the commercial motorcyclist. The okada is king! For the reason stated above the VIO officials don’t really check on them for payment of statutory licences. They swoop rather on taxi and intra city bus operators. But it is common sense that since commercial cyclists far outnumber taxis and buses, the former have greater revenue potential.

Also, due to the senseless and needless traffic jam caused by street trading, careless parking of vehicles and really bad roads, riders on 2 wheels have field day. If a car would take 1hour for the same distance an okada would take 10mins, then it is clear that the system is skewed to favour them.

I am of the strong view that government should regulate their operation (not total ban). For many in Ibadan, the immediate response to that view is: Robberies will increase! The big question is: How have states that have done so—Edo, Lagos, Anambra, Niger—been fairing ever since? Have they now become dens of thieves? Of course not! It is noteworthy that there are no de facto restrictions by Oyo State government whatsoever on Okada. They operate at anytime, anywhere, without helmet, sometimes even during the 2-hour restriction on sanitation days.

For sake of the future of the State it is very unhealthy to have a huge number of citizens who continually disdain the law and are a law unto themselves. It is the responsibility of leadership through foresight to identify current issues that although appear harmless but are latently detrimental. This loose, unregulated, uncontrolled operation of commercial motorcycle is not good for the city. There is no society anywhere in the world that develops in the midst of chronic indiscipline and disorder.

Mr Ajimobi, I challenge you to bring back this key element of true development to Ibadan.