Operatives of the Lagos State Task Force were on Tuesday obstructed by some yet to be identified soldiers from impounding motorcycles operating on the highways and other restricted routes.
It was gathered that the soldiers who came in solidarity and support of four recalcitrant okada riders who violated the Lagos Road Transport Sector Reform Laws 2018, stood their ground, insisting that the bikes impounded would not be taken away.
There is a total ban on commercial motorcycles popularly called Okada in 10 Local Government Areas and their Local Council Development Areas in Lagos.
The affected LGAs include Ikeja, Surulere, Eti-Osa, Lagos Mainland, Lagos Island, and Apapa. Others are Kosofe, Oshodi-Isolo, Somolu and Mushin.
“We encountered some form of resistance from okada operators who claim that the bikes belong to soldiers therefore are untouchable. I quickly cleared their doubt and used it as means to sound a note of warning that there are no sacred cows when it comes to restoring sanity on our roads,” said the agency’s chairman, Adetayo Akerele, in a statement by Gbadeyan Abdulraheem, Director of Press and Public Affairs.
He promised the operators who managed to evade arrest that the long arm of the law would catch up with them soon if they did not turn over a new leaf.
The chairman encouraged uniform personnel who make use of okada as a means of transportation to and fro their beat to ensure that they are fully kitted in their regalia, adding that the only passenger allowed to be on a bike with them is another uniform personnel who is fully kitted.
Akerele also appealed to commuters to desist from patronizing okada operators who he said pose not just safety risks to the passenger and rider, but also a security risk to all residents.
Tuesday’s operation, which lasted for about six hours, was carried out at Badagry Expressway, Mile 2, Second Rainbow Bus Stop, V-Naija Bus Stop, Alabasuru and Berger Bus Stop.