Posted on: 05:05 Tue, 21 Feb 2017

The Federal Government has been given a sound warning by Governor Ayodele Fayose that it cannot ban okada in his state.



Ekiti State Governor and Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum, Mr Ayodele Fayose has challenged the Federal Government over its plan to ban commercial motorcycle, popularly known as Okada in the country. He said the decision by the government is wicked.

In a statement issued by its Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, Governor Fayose, who was addressing Okada riders that accosted him in Ikere Ekiti on his way from Abuja on Saturday, said;

“ban on Okada will worsen the country’s security situation because it will remove foods from the table of so many people.”

Speaking further, he said, “In Ekiti State, we won’t ban Okada because it is a source of livelihood to a lot of families. Why would anyone even contemplate such when government did not create alternative employments?”

He said: “With this economic recession that is biting so hard, it is sheer heartlessness for the federal government to even think of sending Okada riders out of business instead of putting machineries in motion to check their excesses.”

The governor, who promised Okada riders in Ekiti State his continued support and assistance, said; “The federal government has no power to ban Okada in my State and under my watch, no one will prevent Okada Riders from operating as long as they do not go against the laws.”