Date: 2020-02-23

The Kwara State Government has announced that commercial motorcyclists in the state (okada riders) would begin the payment of road tax and use of identity cards with barcodes.

The state commissioner for works, Suleiman Rotimi, stated this in a statement on Saturday, after a meeting with relevant outfits on Thursday.

In the statement, he said all factions of Okada unions in the state would henceforth wear a single uniform.

Mr Rotimi explained that the new single uniform is to beef up security in the state "and screen out unscrupulous elements who use okada to perpetrate criminal acts".

He added that the government would introduce identity cards with barcodes for riders in the state.

"The commissioner mentioned that as part of the strategy to improve security, a censor of all Okada riders would be conducted and population of registered Okada riders would be ascertained.

"Equally, the commissioner stresses the need for road tax payment and urged the riders to fashion out a realistic amount and mode of collection," the statement partly read.

Meanwhile, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) while reporting the meeting of Thursday, noted that the permanent secretary in the ministry, Yusuf Manjo, commended the 'joint motorcycle union' for accepting the proposal for introduction of a single uniform, stickers, IDs/bar codes.

Mr Manjo reportedly assured that necessary mechanism would be set in motion to make the proposal a reality within the shortest possible time.

He urged them to embrace the proposed road tax as highlighted by the commissioner.

Lagos State, also in the South-west, recently banned the operations of okada and keke (tricycle) operators due to security concerns. This led to a conflict between the authorities and residents that has since abated.