In Abuja, 639 commercial motorcycles that were impounded have been crushed by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
The FCTA’s head of the Directorate of Road Traffic Services, Abdulateef Bello, spoke to reporters on Thursday following the crushing of the motorcycles. He claimed that the motorcycles had been impounded because they had been operating through restricted zones within the territory.
According to Bello, the majority of okada operators in Federal Capital City used their motorcycles for risky crimes like bag snatching, drug trafficking, and one-chance theft.
The director clarified that while motorcycles used to cause traffic, other offences are now the cause of the problems.
Bello stated: “The crushing is a continuation of our routine operation to remove commercial motorcycles that continue to operate within the city in compliance with the Federal Capital Territory Administration’s ban, which has been in place since 2006.”
We have conducted this exercise in a sequence, and I’m sure that at this point there is no more information indicating that we will keep impounded commercial motorcycles operating in the Federal Capital City.
“We have now crushed 639; the purpose of crushing them is to dissuade those who continue to doubt that their actions in the Federal Capital Territory are prohibited.
We’ve learned that while these motorcycles were originally intended to create traffic jams, they are now posing a security risk to the lives and property of FCT inhabitants.
“The majority of motorcycles are used to encourage criminal activity, which includes even more dangerous crimes in the city, like drug peddling, bag snatching, and cell phone snatching.”
The practice is one of the tactics being used by the FCT Commissioner of Police, Haruna Garba, to root out criminal activity in the capital.
The motorcycles were seized in the metropolitan region, which does not reflect good on the seat of government, according to Garba, who was represented by Mode Magawata assistant Commissioner of Police, operations.
“We have to enforce the ban; there is no way we can turn a blind eye and let criminality take over the Federal Capital Territory.”
