Certain laws
and rules have been put in place in most states in my country (Nigeria), which
has altered the way we live and operate on a daily basis. I feel the urge to
write about it because even though it affects me also, it is for the greater
good for us as a nation and we all have to lay sentiment aside, look at the
bigger picture objectively and draw out reasonable conclusions from it.
Recently,
states in Nigeria banned the use of motorcycles (popularly known as okada) for
public transportation. There has been a lot of grumbling and complains from
both the riders who use them as a means to provide for themselves and their
family members and the citizens that have resorted to it as the easiest and
fastest way to move around in our busy state. Also is the recent addition and
implementation of rules and regulations for motor drivers of any kind,
(commercial or private).
I want to
stress the fact that as human beings, the first thing we should always look out
for is our safety, which is the main reason why the government has put all this
measures in place, be it to avoid accident on our roads which may lead to loss
of life or permanent injury and disability in some cases. Also is the case of
security, most of the robbers in Lagos (a state in Nigeria where I live)
operate using this bikes to move them swiftly from scene of crime.
I have
noticed that most of the people riding okada do not have any form of
profession, be it through educational background or trade/skill learnt. The
emergence of bikes as a means of transportation has made people lazy and to
dump reasonable jobs just to raise quick cash, thereby endangering lives.
We should also note that in the creation of
Nigeria from the beginning, okada was never meant for public transportation,
even though we understand that the situation of the country pushed most of them
to that point. A mentor of mine said, “okada is a bad thing with advantages”,
he also said that if we wanted a better future for this country, then we should
know that okada is not in the picture.
I know it
can be inconveniencing for both parties involved, but I see it as opportunity
waiting to be tapped. The government has put in place different schemes which
we can partner with business wise to ease the stress on the citizens while we
still make money, and as for the riders, programs are being put in place to
equip them so as to be able to provide for themselves. This I would be talking about
in my next write-up.
I would want to have your opinion on this
matter, please leave your comment, advising the government on what can be
further done to ease the stress on the citizens and also your mindset as
one of the people suffering this inconveniences.
Thanks for
your time.
GOD BLESS THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF
NIGERIA.
Fakeye
Olaniyi Olatunde
President
Neff
Business Concept.
