Motorcyclists otherwise known as Okada riders yesterday torched two luxury buses in the fleet of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) to protest the death of one of their colleagues crushed on the busy Mile 12 Expressway.
An eyewitness told Daily Sun that trouble started when the Okada rider carried two passengers on the expressway against official regulation.
He said in a bid to evade being arrested by officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), the Okada rider ran into an oncoming BRT bus after dropping the two passengers in a hurry.
The death of the motorcylist reportedly drew ire of his colleagues, who chased away all LASTMA officials in the area; invaded BRT buses within reach, and set two of them (a red and a blue bus) ablaze.
The confrontation caused commotion in the area, with people scampering for safety as policemen drafted to the area shot sporadically into the air to scare the irate Okada riders and many others away from the scene.
Buses operating under the BRT scheme withdrew services leaving many commuters stranded at the various bus stops. An Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Godwin Nwobodo who was on ground at the time Daily Sun arrived the scene confirmed that the deceased rider ran into the BRT corridor to evade arrest and was crushed in the process.
He said he was at the scene to maintain the peace, adding that nobody was arrested as a result of the incident.
Police spokesman, Sam Jinadu, a Deputy Superintendent, confirmed that a motorcyclist was killed but that the situation has been brought under control. However, observers believe the ugly incident that led to the death of the Okadaman and the burning of the two buses would have been avoided, if laws were backed by strict enforcement. According to them, the ugly incident was a combination of highhandedness and overzealousness on the part the LASTMA officials and flagrant disobedience to law and order of the Okada rider.
Daily Sun was reminded that besides the ban on okada rider plying the highways, they were also prohibited from carrying two passengers, a directive they consistently flout with impunity. Others blamed the recklessness of the BRT drivers for the Mile 12 killing, even as they stressed the need for the operations of the LASTMA officials to approach their duty with human face. A motorcyclist who simply identified himself as Babatope said the way LASTMA officials treat okada riders would warrant anyone to run for safety.
“I don’t blame the deceased, he knew what he would have gone through if he was arrested. Apart from physical assault, he would have paid through his nose,” he said, adding that LASTMA officials have no mercy. “They don’t believe in corrective measures, their own is arrest and extortion.” Another rider, Monye Michael said: “We are going through hell in the hands of officials of LASTMA. Sometimes, if you don’t have money in your pocket to part with, they will take you to ATM, where you will give the money requested from you.”
He wants the state government to reorient their men. “Sometimes, they will just cook up a story against okada riders that they have broken traffic laws and there is no way to defend yourself.” Meanwhile, Governor Babatunde Fashola has ordered a thorough probe into the matter. Fashola, who spoke with aviation correspondents said he has already received preliminary report on the matter but would comment better when the full report was out.
“Well, I have received a preliminary report on the incident and I have ordered an investigation into it.
Therefore, I think it will be prejudicial to jump into any conclusions now without getting the details. But I think what is important to be said is that I doubt that any Okada man will leave his home in the morning with one sole mission to go and fight LAGBUS and I also doubt that any LAGBUS man will leave his home with the sole mission to go and fight Okada man. This is why I have consistently advocated peaceful co-existence and tolerance.
“Incidents will happen that will provoke our temper; I am human too and at every time I have found it in me to control my temper. And this is what all of us must do as a people. I think it is important here to stress that violence and anger are not options for a people who want development. It is not a strategy; violence and anger is not a strategy. It is signs of weakness. It is superior thinking that endures; violence is only a flash and it evaporates. Therefore, when we appeal to people, we should also know that anger management is something that we must develop”, he said.
While regretting the burning of the two buses, Fashola said it would further bring hardship to Lagosians.
“Now, the burning of two LAGBUSES, if that is true, it means that those who participated in it have just also contributed in burning the assets that we acquired with their money. This is tax payers' money; it doesn't belong to Mr. Fashola. It is collective asset for our own benefit, so if we buy those buses with your money and my money and somebody decides to set it ablaze, has it really contributed to our development?” he queried.
http://sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2011/feb/10/national-10-02-2011-003.htm
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