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The Oyo State Government would soon commence registration of commercial motorcycles and tricycles, the State Commissioner for Works and Transport, Mr. Wasiu Dauda, has disclosed.
He made the disclosure during a stakeholders’ meeting with members of the unions at the House of Chiefs, Secretariat Ibadan at the weekend.
According to Dauda, the move would help incorporate commercial motorcyclists and tricyclists into a single database for proper identification of each member of the union.
He said it was a crime control measure as it would prevent hoodlums from using the operators for robbery, kidnapping and other vices that are rampant in the society.
His words: “This registration will eradicate impersonation of members, provide opportunities to benefit from government social services and encourage special recognition of outstanding individuals of the unions”.
Speaking at the occasion, the Chairman, Oyo State Road Traffic Management Agency (OYRTMA) Col. Tayo Ishola (rtd), emphasized that the data base would promote safety on the roads and consequently urged members of the unions to obey traffic laws in order to reduce road accident to the barest minimum.
Addressing the controversial dues being paid by the operators, the Special Adviser to Governor Abiola Ajimobi on Internal Generated Revenue, Mr. Biyi Oloko, stated that the state government never appointed any officer to collect illegal dues through ticketing.
Oloko, who was represented by Mr. Belly Adetokunbo, warned that any individual caught sabotaging government revenue drive would be dealt with in accordance with the provisions of the laws.
He charged members of the union to join hands with the government by paying their taxes and necessary dues to government’s coffers, adding that this would complement the efforts of the State government towards infrastructural development.
In their reactions, representatives of the National Union of Road and Transport Workers (Motorcycle Unit) and Tricycles Owners Association of Nigeria, Comrades Aderemi Ayoade and Musbau Adeyemi respectively pledged their cooperation with the government and called for friendly government policy to make life better and meaningful for them.