Operatives of the Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences Enforcement Unit (Taskforce) have arrested eight suspected Okada operators for allegedly constituting a nuisance on highways, assaulting citizens, and attacking security personnel stationed at Apongbon, Marina, and surrounding areas during enforcement operations.
The suspects identified as Buba Umar, 40; Musa Usman, 30; Gambo Dauda, 32; Shagari Bulba, 42; Auwalu Mohammed, 30; Idris Hassan, 25; Wale Yusuf, 43; Ohnosi Osaseti; and Sagiru Asiru were apprehended at the scene of a fracas where they reportedly attacked operatives with broken bottles, machetes, cutlasses, and other dangerous weapons while attempting to free impounded motorcycles. Other accomplices remain at large but will be tracked down by the agency.
According to one of the suspects, the group was allegedly “sponsored to put up massive resistance in an attempt to halt the activities and efforts of the State Government to rid the State of the menace of Okada operations on restricted highways and curb other criminal activities.”
Chairman of the Taskforce, CSP Adetayo Akerele, explained that the suspects had been under surveillance following repeated complaints of attacks on uniformed personnel.
He said, “I received complaints from residents and senior citizens alleging that Okada operators forming an esprit de corps, if allowed unchecked, could pose a serious threat to residents, pedestrians, and schoolchildren. I immediately put strategies in place to track them down.”
During interrogation, one of the suspects, Wale Yusuf (aka Babaalawo), admitted that they had planned that enforcement against Okada operators “would no longer be a tea party” and would be met with stiff resistance.
Others confessed that despite previous seizures of their motorcycles, they continued operating on restricted routes because of the lucrative nature of the business.
CSP Akerele assured that the suspects would face prosecution, stressing that their arrest would serve as a deterrent. He warned, “The Taskforce will not relent in its efforts to protect Lagos roads and highways from criminal elements who are hell-bent on turning the State into a jungle.”
He further urged residents to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities, adding, “We will not retreat or surrender in our drive to make the State’s roads free of recalcitrant Okada operators, who are generally seen as a threat to our collective security.”
