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Okada ban: provide alternative job, residents urge Lagos state govt.

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Okada ban

Okada ban: provide alternative job, residents urge Lagos state govt.

By Ifeoma Ikem

Okada ban

Residents of Alimiosho area of Lagos state have advised the state government and house of Assembly to provide alternative job before banning the commercial motorcycle operations also known as “okada’’ to avoid creating more hardship for those who depend on it as means of livelihood.

The residents and motorcyclists spoke with our correspondent yesterday during a protest staged by Human right activist Comrade Iche Savior at Jakande gate, Ijegun /Isheri area in Alimiosho local government council.

 

 

 

They expressed fear that the Okada ban will create more difficult times for the communities.

Some of the commercial motorcyclists in the area also added that the government should have involved them in the policy making that led to the ban.

 

 

 

 

 

 

According to the residents, immediately the ban of okada was enforced, people started trekking for long distances to get to their destinations due to non accessibility of good roads in the community.

Mr Williams Okeize, a resident, said the development would worsen the current situation as some people who ride the bikes would now have to trek down to their various destinations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

According to him, majority of these residents are under abject poverty and do not have vehicles of their own, the ban will further make them miserable and worse.

“Many of these okada riders feed themselves and their families with the little they earn from riding these okadas, some of these okada riders are graduates with no jobs, there is a need for the government to provide alternatives before such ban.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ominyi Odinaka, a Civil Engineer and Unizik graduate decried the already high rate of unemployed youths in the country, saying that the ban would cause more hardship to majority of us that graduated and with no job.

According to him, ‘I graduated two years ago, I had savings of three hundred thousand to set up a business so as to earn a living but could not because of the economic situation before I had to switch to Okada riding for sometime to make up the money I need for the business.

 

 

 

 

 

 

“this ban of Okada affected some of us negatively which added more unemployed youths to the labour market.

A mother of four, Mrs Faitha Idris laments that her husband rides Okada within the axis of Kudeyibu Estate Ijegun and they manage to have two square meals on daily basis but since the enforcement began, the police has been taking advantage of it by arresting the riders and extorting them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

‘I’m pleading with Gov. Sanwo -Olu to help in lifting the ban, many other families whose husbands and fathers operate Okada are dying of hunger.

” Where are we going to start from, school is resuming on Monday, meaning our children can’t go back to school because there is no other job for my husband, I am a petty trader but there’s no sale like before people are not buying again “, she added

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reacting to the ban, Comr Iche Savior advised the state government that instead of banning them especially in the rural area places like Alimiosho area “it is better to register them and integrate them into the ever expanding transportation .

Iche said the government and house of Assembly should have a rethink about the ban in some areas because it would increase the rate of suffering and unemployment in the state.

 

 

 

 

 

 

“We are already having challenges in the country already; the government should provide alternatives to those Okada riders before banning their activities.

” Even though the Okada operators are not happy with the job but that is the only work they do since government have no job for them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

” Okada riders covers a larger population in the state, they provide the needed services to the residents in some area that are not motorable”, he said.

Miss Peculiar Chimeremma, a youth said that the ban would increase more crimes and lead to a lot of youths eventually join criminal groups.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Some of the operators were honest business men seeking daily income to sustain their families and were not depending on government or anyone else.

She said stopping these people from their means of livelihood would not only affect their businesses but also force the users of these commercial means of transportation to trek to their destinations where other commercial vehicles cannot access

society

Baale Oluwole Adeshina of Arakanga celebrates Ilugun day cultural festival

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Baale Oluwole Adeshina of Arakanga celebrates Ilugun day cultural festival

 

Friday, 30 August, 2024, will linger for months in the minds of sons and daughters of Ilugun Arakanga in Abeokuta,Ogun State as they celebrated Ilugun day in grand style. The event was historic and fun- filled as friends and lovers-of culture graced the occasion.

The journey into the culture packed event started on 28 August with libation by the high ranked chiefs of the town lead by Oluwo of Ilugun, Chief Ifaseun Idowu who attest that the gods of the land were been appeased before the event and had given a sign of peace.

The three day event which marked the first of baale Oluwole Adeshina welcomed shower of rain in the early hours but the indeginous sons and daughters of the town trooped out to celebrate inspite of the rain.

To add colour and dignity to this year’s Ilugun day celebration, the happy indigenes were seen with colourful aso.ebi wihich add more beauty to the event and to the upliftment.of the kingdom.

Speaking further on the occasion, Oluwo on behalf of the baale appreciate kabiesi the Osile- of Oke Ona, Oba Adedapo Tejuosho for his fatherly love and support always and also to Ilugun people for trooping out in mass to celebrate the day.

.Oluwo also note that, there is another festival that binds Ilugun people together. Isomariwo day unlike Ilugun day is celebrated every three years to honour the ancenstral ‘Olugun’.

Also present to celebrate the day were nibẹ Ọdọfin, Bada, Apesin, Iyalode and some other chiefs.

Just like any other-Yoruba kingdom, Ilugun people are also descendant of Oduduwa who migrated from Ile-Ife to their present kingdom..

Others at the event were Honourable Sarafa Ishola, Mrs Irene Kokumo, Agbaakin Oke- Ona, Imam Obalomerue, Chief Ikija,.Pastor Gbadebo and host of others.

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Crime

Court jails father of four for raping wife’s 17-year-old sister

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Court jails father of four for raping wife’s 17-year-old sister

Court jails father of four for raping wife’s 17-year-old sister

 

A 30-year-old motorcyclist, Michael Olorunfemi, has been arrested for allegedly raping his wife’s 17-year-old sister inside the bush, in Akure, the Ondo State capital. The suspect, a father of four, was said to have raped the victim sometime in August 2024, at 10 p.m., in the Onigaari area of Irese Road, Akure.

 

 

A source said that the suspect confesses that “The victim approached me to take her to her boyfriend’s house, and on our way, I stopped near a bush and raped her.

“I promised to give her money, which I did not. She then reported me to her mother, which led to my arrest.”

Contacted, the police image maker, Funmi Odunlami said that the suspect had been charged to court.
Odunlami said the suspect has been remanded at Olokuta prison by the court, over the alleged rape.
The police prosecutor, Inspector Taiwo Oniyere, said the defendant committed the offence sometime in August 2024, at 10p.m., in the Onigaari area of Irese Road, Akure.

Oniyere added that the defendant unlawfully had carnal knowledge of the 17-year-old girl (name withheld).

The offence, according to the charge, contravened Sections 357 and 358 of the Criminal Code Law of Ondo State, 2006.

Police prosecutor, Oniyere, urged the court to remand the defendant in prison custody pending advice from the office of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, DPP.

 

The trial Chief Magistrate, Kolawole Aro, has, therefore, ordered that the defendant be remanded in Olokuta prison and that the case file be transferred to the DPP for advice.
Magistrate Aro has adjourned the case till October 31, 2024, for review.

 

 

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Hardship: Cleric Urges Southwest Leaders To Speak Up

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Hardship: Cleric Urges Southwest Leaders To Speak Up

Hardship: Cleric Urges Southwest Leaders To Speak Up

 

 

Renowned cleric and Planter of Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) Adamimogo Grace of Mercy Prayer Mountain Worldwide, Prophet Sam Olu Alo, has charged Southwest leaders to tell President Bola Ahmed Tinubu the hard truth about the current hardship faced by Nigerians. He urged all Southwest stakeholders to speak up to avert crises, particularly during this era of economic challenges.

Speaking on a radio program on Adamimogo FM, Alo said all stakeholders in Yorubaland, including Christian and Muslim bodies, as well as those with direct access to the President, should meet with him and let him know what Nigerians are going through.

He said, The Ooni of Ife should convene a meeting with all Obas in the Southwest and choose a delegation to meet Tinubu at Aso Rock.

“CAN President Pastor Samuel Oladele, Pastor Adeboye of RCCG, and other respected men of God should also lead a delegation of clerics to meet President Tinubu in Abuja to express how deeply Nigerians are suffering.”

According to him, President Tinubu is not a wicked person, but he has a listening ear to heed advice and take necessary steps to provide solutions to the problems.

He stated that President Tinubu needs prayers because it seems some past Nigerian leaders, who had good intentions, failed to achieve them once they entered Aso Rock.

The cleric recalled that President Tinubu had once assured Nigerians to be patient, saying that relief was on the way, but it seems the promise is yet to be fulfilled.

Alo called for a change in the leadership of NNPC, stating that for Tinubu to succeed and for Nigerians to be content with his administration, there is a need to either reform NNPC or scrap it entirely as it is one of the root causes of Nigeria’s problems.

Despite the economic hardship, Nigerians still support President Tinubu. Many graduates now regret going to school because those who didn’t attend are doing better than them.

“Farm produce is rotting in some areas due to a lack of good roads for transporting the products.

“Regarding the minimum wage, I once prophesied to Nigerian workers that even if N500,000 is given as the minimum wage, it still won’t be enough. There is no amount of minimum wage that will bring relief to workers. What they should focus on is how the prices of goods and services can be reduced to the barest minimum.”

He, however, urged Nigerians to be patient and give Tinubu time to address the issues, stating that protests or agitation are not the best solutions to the current challenges.

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