Lagos okada ban: Over 4,000 motorcycles seized in 15 weeks, say police

The Lagos police command says it will continue its clampdown on commercial motorcycles until “sanity is restored” in the state.

Abiodun Alabi, the state’s commissioner of police, said this on Thursday.

The Lagos government had, in May, announced a “total ban” on the operations of commercial motorcycles in six LGAs in the state — Ikeja, Surulere, Eti Osa, Lagos Mainland, Lagos Island and Apapa.

The government later extended the ban to four more LGAs — Kosofe, Oshodi-Isolo, Shomolu, and Mushin.

In the statement issued on Thursday by Benjamin Hundeyin, Lagos police spokesman, Alabi said Lagos needs to be secure and well-run to draw additional investors.

Statistics from the statement showed that a total of 4,694 motorcycles were seized from “uncooperative commercial motorcyclists” between June 1 and September 9, 2022.

According to the statement, 1,885 motorcycles were impounded in June, 1,501 motorcycles in July, while August and September saw the impoundment of 1,029 and 279 motorcycles, respectively.

The data also revealed that 1,490 persons, including those identified as “miscreants, street traders, traffic offenders”, have been convicted for various offences in the state.

The statistics also showed that 26 tricycles and 106 vehicles were seized for disobeying traffic laws in the state, among other offences.

“The enforcement has to be continuous to maintain the tempo that we have attained within so short a time,” the commissioner said.

“Many of the seized motorcycles have been crushed, but the most important message that we want to pass across is compliance so that the government does not have to crush any motorcycles.”