Kwara State Government yesterday said it has no plan to ban commercial motorcycle operators in the state, unlike other states of the federation.

Speaking during this year's May Day celebration in Ilorin, yesterday Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed said  government existed to strengthen livelihoods and enhance the well being of its people.

The governor said however, his administration intended to implement a phased replacement of Okadas with tricycles that were safer and more lucrative, adding that tricycle operators made more money given their capacity to carry more passengers.

He said government was aware of the demands by labour unions for enhanced welfare packages for their members and the resolution of other outstanding issues and implored them to adopt more negotiation tools to guard against actions that would derail the peace and the economic survival of the state.

Meanwhile, the state council of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) have hailed the efforts of the state government to diversify the state's economy from civil service to industrial economy.

The chairman of TUC, Mr Kolawole Olumoh, said diversification of the state's economy would help to sustain amenities already provided by the government.

The labour union leader, who also called for decent wages for workers, said it would guarantee the future of the economy of the state in all strata.