Professor Itse Sagay has joined other prominent Nigerians in reacting to the okada ban enforced by Lagos state government on Feb 1, 2020.
Sagay advised against the reversal of the ban which he said would curb the high rate in road accidents caused by reckless motorcycle riders.
However, he faulted the Sanwo-olu led administration for not putting up measures to tackle the ripple effect of the ban.
Lagos state government earlier revealed 600 new buses are at the seaports awaiting clearance. Sagay said the buses should have been cleared before the enforcement of okada ban in the state.
“The ban is right on principle. Lagos state government is not telling us everything. I always say that the government knows more than we do. It is not every information available to them they will reveal to members of the public. Lagos state government must have seen some danger signals which makes them act before it is too late. That is my impression on the ban”.
“But I blame them that they did not take little more time to prepare for the consequences. Now they are saying that they have about 600 buses at the ports, they should have cleared those buses first before initiating the ban”.
“ They are a government body, they can accelerate the clearance of the buses within a week, put them on the roads and then go ahead with what they want to do”.
“I support the ban on principle. Apart from what I do not know and I am sure it has to do with the security of Lagos state people. Apart from that, those Okada people are a threat to our existence. They don’t obey any law, they cross red lights”.
“On many occasions, I have had cause to complain to the Commissioner for Transport that Okada riders confront me every time on Eko bridge when I am going home. They are so indiscipline, dangerous and reckless in terms of the injuries and pain they cause”.
“They are riding against the traffic, threatening those of us who have the right of way. We have to move aside for them to rush through. As they are doing it, that encourages yellow buses (Danfo) and they too will join them in going against traffic”.
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“Right now on Eko bridge, there is no division between the road that takes you into Lagos and the one that takes you out. They are using it as they like and it is so dangerous to other road users”.
“So, I think the ban is a good idea. Let us clear it and remove that danger from our existence. Maybe the timing was a bit abrupt, maybe they should have brought in alternative vehicles to cushion the effect but as far as I am concerned, there should be no going back.
“They should now rush to provide the alternative buses to cushion the pains of the people”