At least 344 commercial motorcycles (aka Okada) were impounded by the Lagos State Environment and Special Offences Enforcement Unit (Task Force) in seven days in different parts of the state.

The unit’s spokesperson, Gbadeyan Abdulraheem, disclosed on Sunday that the seizures were made during raids in some areas of the state.

Mr Abdulraheem said 174 motorcycles were seized in Abule-Ado, 50 in Lagos Island, 50 in Berger/Grammar School and 70 others from Abule-Egba axis.

He said the unit had warned men in uniform, like soldiers and police officers, against disobedience to traffic law and urged them to obey the extant rules and regulations of the state or be prosecuted.

Mr Abdulraheem said the task force has vowed to bring the operations of recalcitrant motorcyclists to a complete halt as it carries out the week-long raid across various parts of the metropolis.

According to him, the agency’s chairman, CSP Shola Jejeloye, has vowed to cripple the activities of commercial motorcyclists along some highways in the state.

“There is a ban on their activities along selected routes and local governments in Lagos; therefore, they should not be allowed to operate as they please.

“There will be no sacred cows in the enforcement of okada operations in the state; therefore, any man in uniform caught conveying passengers on a bike for commercial purposes will be thoroughly dealt with.

“We should be the ones setting the right examples, not breaking them. It will no longer be business as usual,” he quoted the chairman as saying.

(NAN)