The Anambra State government is not planning to restrict the operations of commercial motorcycles in Nnewi.
This fact was stated in Awka today by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Mr. C. Don Adinuba, while addressing newsmen.
“There is no iota of truth in the rumours making the round that the government plans to ban okada, as commercial motorcycles are popularly called in Nigeria.
“The rumours are politically motivated”.
The commissioner continued: “The state government has always made it clear that Nnewi Town would not be affected when the restriction order on the use of commercial motorcycles in Onitsha, the state commercial capital, and Awka, the administrative capital, was made in the middle of last year”.
Mr. Adinuba revealed that the rumours of the ban were started by a couple of politically exposed persons participating in the ongoing general elections in the country.
He advised politicians to always tell their followers the truth rather than mislead them with all manner of propaganda.
The commissioner noted that only societies which treat facts as sacred develop rapidly while those run on false propaganda experience tremendous development challenges.
He explained that Anambra State has experienced unprecedented development in the last four years because of the government’s commitment to the truth and issues which benefit the people generally.
He stated: “Working for the common good should be an article of faith for political leaders rather than the private gains they make for the moment which will ultimately hurt society”.
Mr. Adinuba remarked that the state government recognizes that the motorcycle business has a special place in Nnewi’s astronomical development in the last few decades.
“The state government is proud that Nnewi is the headquarters of the motorcycle business in Nigeria,” he stated.
“For decades, almost every motorcycle imported into the country passed through Nnewi, even when there were practically no infrastructural facilities like well tarred roads.
“How the Nnewi people, including non-indigenes, were able to perform this miracle with no government support is what researchers, scholars and students should study in higher institutions.
“Nnewi represents, to a large extent, the typical Igbo spirit, that is, the stubborn determination to succeed in spite of all odds”.
Mr. Adinuba stated that Governor Willie Obiano has always admired the Nnewi people and their leaders for their ingenuity and advises other Nigerians to understudy their industry and great capacity for innovation as part of the process for Nigeria’s rapid economic transformation.
