Obey Laws Or Leave Lagos, Fashola Warns Okada Riders

Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State has warned commercial motorcyclists (Okada riders) to either obey the traffic laws of the state or leave the state because their excesses can no longer be tolerated.

The governor, who gave this warning while inspecting ongoing projects in the state on Sunday had earlier on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway ordered the arrest of Okada riders and vehicles driving against traffic.

“You will see my next line of action in the fullness of time, but I think ultimately Lagosians must decide whether or not they want Okada.

“In the meantime, they have to comply with our rules and if they don’t, they will have the law enforcement agencies to contend with. We will not allow this incessant and sheer disregard for our laws. Those who cannot comply should leave our state,” Fashola stated.

On the light rail project he inspected, Fashola described the pace of construction work as quite impressive and reassuring.

According to the governor, from all indications, especially given the pace at which the contractor, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, CCECC, is moving with the work, the first seven kilometres of the Blue Line of the Light Rail Project would be delivered sometime in 2012, subject to availability of funds.

“You owe all the obligations to show Lagosians what you saw. You see the work that is going on; people are working even on Sundays. So, it is a 24 – 7 – 363 day operation. They go on break only for two days in a year,” the governor added.

The governor observed that several people had been employed through the project, saying that “on one of the sites, we have a total of 325 workers, 300 of them Nigerians and 25 Chinese. At the second site where we have the terminus, you also saw another set of workers.

“So, this is what it is all about. Those people would, probably, have been idle looking for desperate income for which there is no work. But I am happy that we are able to put them to work and give them the opportunity to retain their dignity and use their own hands and their own skills to earn a living and feed their families.”

Fashola explained that the timely delivery of the project would be subject to the availability of fund but expressed optimism that the project would be delivered within the stipulated time as 90 percent of the structural work was already completed.

On the uncompleted housing project at Ajara, near the French Village in Badagry, Fashola explained that the state government’s intention was to see the project completed.

“What is going on here is that we want to deliver on this housing project. We have the Commissioner for Housing here and we have project consultants here. They sent memos to me but sometimes I don’t do my work with memos; I want to see for myself the actual state of things. I have seen what I need to see. It is not a one ministry action. Ministry of Works has already made an observation that there is need of a road network into the estate,” he said.

— Kazeem Ugbodaga