It’s been agony all week on roads in Lagos metropolis, as commuters have been trekking to their destinations. No longer available are the once ubiquitous Okada (motorcycles) and Keke (tricycles), no thanks to the state government’s recent ban.
No matter government’s argument on its ban, the action has brought untold hardship to residents who have been facing difficulties. “I don’t have any problem with the ban of okada, but my concern is keke. Every morning, I now have to walk long distances before struggling to get a minibus to convey me to my place of work at Ogba,” said 27-year-old Habiba Musa, a resident of Aina Street, Ojodu, Lagos.
Similarly, Mr Sule Idris who works at the Murtala Muhammed Airport and lives at Akute in Ogun State, said he had been trekking from Agege to Oba Akran to board a bus to Ikeja. Idris said by the time he gets to work, he would have been not only exhausted as a result of long trekking, but could practically do nothing afterwards.
Since the ban of Okada and Keke, many residents of the Lagos metropolis and some areas on the outskirts of the city affected by the restriction order have been narrating tales of woe, tales of long treks. Transportation comfort appears over for residents used to Okada and Keke, as well as those who used Opay, Gokada and Max.ng.
From Berger to Ogba, Agidingbi, Ikeja, Ikeja GRA, Adeniyi Jones and Ikorodu Road down to Lagos Island, Victoria Island, Obalende, CMS, TBS, Apapa and the outskirts along Lekki/Ajah, Badore and Abraham Adesanya, commuters have been lamenting. (Text courtesy of Daily Trust)