Lagos is Nigeria’s commercial centre. With a population of over 14 million persons, the state has been dogged with the challenges of Okada-related crimes. At different times, the Lagos state government had threatened to ban the use of Okada in the state due to insecurity associated with the operation of motorcycle taxis in the state. In this report, OLANREWAJU OYEDEJI reports about Okada-related crimes in Lagos.

PEDRO could barely talk when he saw this reporter, he sat on a mat with a heavy bandage on his right leg.

“I do not have the emotional strength to talk,” he told this reporter while wiping tears off his face.

Pedro was involved in an accident by a hit-and-run dispatch rider.

Before the incident, he worked as a licensing officer at Victoria Island and lived in the Ikola area of Lagos.

Since the accident occurred, Pedro, described as a hard-working young man by his wife, refused to visit the hospital despite the worsening condition of his legs. Pedro’s wife said her husband has resigned himself to fate and refused to talk to anyone.

The story of Pedro mirrors how motorcycle taxis operators popularly called Okada riders continue to cause misery for the Lagos residents.

With a population of over 14 million persons and due to the problem of traffic congestion in the state, motorcycles became a means to reach many places faster but sometimes at the risk of one’s life.

Pedro is not alone. Comfort Olajuwon,60, narrated how she lost the balance of her legs after a motorcycle accident.

“I went out to buy something and I was hit by a motorcycle, the rider ran away but people around came to my rescue. As you can see, my legs have become worse due to this as I can barely move from one end to the other after the incident,” she said.

Another victim of Okada operators is Samuel. He was not knocked down by Okada rider. He was instead a victim of robbery perpetrated by Okada riders.

Samuel who owns a three-bedroom flat in Ijaiye area of Lagos state recounted how robbers on motorcycles stormed his house. The robbers carted away money, phones and other valuables.

“It was at night when some young men came to my house, they told me that they know my wife has jewellery and we have other valuables. The armed men took my mother-in-law’s money, my wife’s jewellery and carted away six phones”

Samuel noted that the use of motorcycles helped them escape.

“Before we could call for help, they were gone with the help of their motorcycle,” he recalls.

Another victim, Peter, told this reporter how his bag containing documents and money was snatched by men on Okada.

“I was around Berger when my bag was snatched by men on a motorcycle. It was very horrific because I had several thousands of naira inside the bag, all my documents were gone too. For weeks I could not recover the shock,” he recounted.

Lagosians want regulation Of Okada riders in Lagos, scared of increased crimes

All the respondents, about 150 of them, who spoke to this reporter in different local government areas of Lagos state, want Okada riding to be regulated in the state.

Though they admitted the necessity of Okada as commercial taxis in Lagos, they emphasise that the government need to caution them.

A business owner in Lagos, Chidi, stated that while criminality is a nationwide issue, Lagos has become too worrisome for neglect.

MORE ON THIS STORY HERE: https://www.icirnigeria.org/how-okada-riders-cause-disability-promote-crime-in-lagos/