OKADA BAN: You Can't Ban Okada In Ekiti ...... Fayose tells FG

Governor Peter Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State has reacted to the directives of the Federal Government to begin implementation of the "ban on motorcycle operators across the country.

Fawho doubles as the chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum condemned the move.

A statement issued on Sunday, February 19, by his special assistant on public communications and new media, Lere Olayinka, read: “Ban on Okada will worsen the country’s security situation because it will remove foods from the table of so many people.

“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?

“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 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.”

If at all the federal government wants to proceed with the move, then the best they could do is to provide sustainable alternatives to the okada riders because in a situation where there is nothing on ground, they wouldn’t mind soiling their hands in criminal activities in their desperate bid to make ends meet.

Apparently the economic situation is not palatable and one cannot afford to sit at home all day without doing anything and expect to scale through the hurdles.

In a situation where there federal government fails to provide the okada riders with alternative source of livelihood, if they eventually resort to crime, people may not be totally wrong if they justify their actions since they were initially working hard and earning a living in a responsible way prior to the government policy.