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Protesting Okada Riders Burn Down Govt Vehicle In Iyana-Ipaja
Violent protests have become the order of the day since Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu restricted Okadas and Kekes. On Monday, February 3rd, commercial motorcyclists staged a protest in the Ijora-Costain suburb of the city. They erected bonfires and exchanged gunfire with police officers.
On Wednesday, February 5th, it took a combined team of heavily armed police officers to quell violent riots in Iyana-Ipaja. That is another Lagos suburb. The riot was due to the ban placed on the operations of the commercial bikers. At Alaguntan in Iyana-Ipaja, just before 10 am, miscreants took over the road. They vandalized cars and threw the whole of Alimosho local government into pandemonium.
Protesting Okada Riders
Before long, banks were forced to shut down and stalls at the Iyana-Ipaja market had to close shop. Police personnel arrived at the scene to create more chaos by firing live bullets into the air. Bonfires were also visible in the distance and a truck belonging to LASTMA was set ablaze by miscreants and Okada operators in Aboru, another Iyana-Ipaja community.
According to an eyewitness at the scene of the clash; the protesting Keke and Okada riders pushed the LASTMA van parked on the sidewalk to the center of the road and set it ablaze.
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See Related Post: Lagos State Government To Crush 2,500 Seized Okadas
Seizing Bikes In An Area There Aren’t Banned
The violence escalated when a government task force team stormed Alimosho to seize Okadas even though operations of the motorcycle and tricycle riders have not banned in Alimosho.
“While the task force team was arresting and seizing their Okadas and Kekes, some of them came to the Iyana-Ipaja center to burn the LASTMA vehicle parked opposite the Iyana-Ipaja roundabout bus stop,” another eyewitness shared.
At the time of filing this story, calm and normalcy have been restored to Iyana-Ipaja and most of Alimosho.
