The recent ban on commercial motorcycles popularly called Okada by the Niger State government as a means of checking the nefarious activities of ritualists and gunmen across the state who have been terrorizing innocent citizens in the last three months has been described as a good omen.
The activities of the ritualists and gunmen became well pronounced in the wake of bomb explosions across the country which gave the perpetrators an opportunity to hide under the cover of Boko Haram to unleash terror on security agencies in Minna town and some selected local government areas in the state.
The ways and manner in which they have been going about with their activities under the guise of commercial motorcycling may have informed the government decision to put a ban on the motorcycle operators two months ago.
Investigations revealed that the ban on motorcycle in Niger State is not only a relief to medical officials at the Minna General Hospital but also another way of making sure that the Okada riders completely stay out of accident.
Our reporters who visited the accident ward at the General Hospital Minna found out that the whole ward was completely empty a situation that has never been witnessed in the last five to six years.One of the Nurses at the accident ward who spoke that the Ban on Okada is a blessing to the state because many people have lost their life through one form of accident or the order while some have either their arms or legs amputated due to the frequent accident.
He said “we want to thank the Niger state government for taking the bull by the horns to ban Okada riders from operating between the hours of 7:00 pm and 7:00 am this has brought a very big relief to medical workers who are detailed to the accident wards”.
He also said “sometimes we are use to waking up in the middle of the night while we are together with our families to come and attend to accidents victims brought to the ward because of motorcycle accident but now things have changed, we would want the government to continue in this direction because this directive has saved so many lives in the last three months”.
A Senior Police officer who does not want his name in print told that the ban on Okada which the police are effecting are part the routine police operation which must be carried out to the letter because it is assisting both the general public and the security agencies.
In the heat of the Boko Haram bomb explosions in various part of the North some unscrupulous individuals hide under the name of the sect to carry out nefarious activities including spiritualist who on daily basis behead human beings in the name of rituals.
The police officer maintained that “what we are experiencing now in the area of security information gathering is quite laudable because many of the boys who are being used by ritualists did not have the opportunity to do so again as the police are always battle ready to swoop on any body that violates the law”.
We are even begging the governor to see if he can ban the use of commercial motorcycles completely from the state so that the enduring peace which the state have been enjoying in the past can be restored