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Insecurity In Nigeria: Lagos State Set To Ban Commercial Motorcyclists

Okada Riders

The Lagos State government has taken a step to curb the rate of insecurity in the state by further strengthening the ban imposed on commercial motorcyclists, also known as okada riders, in the state. With several crimes reported in several parts of the state, the Lagos State governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu is set to announce a new policy on okada riders operation in the state.

With the spate of crime perpetrated by the okada riders on the increase, it is claimed that the policy to be unveiled on Tuesday, May 17, 2021, would be aimed at imposing a further ban on okada riders. An insider in the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation revealed to Sunday Tribune that part of the policy would include a roll-out of buses that would help ease the transportation burden in the event that commercial motorcyclists are banned. According to him, “as more buses are rolled out across routes in Lagos, that means okada is gone forever.” There have been partial okada bans in the past – in some areas – but the incoming ban seems to be a total eradication in all parts of  Lagos metropolis.

This policy is set to be rejected by the over 400,000 okada riders who ply Lagos’ roads as they see the policy as inhuman and inconsiderate but when asked why the commercial cyclists have not been carried along, the source was quick to point out that the okada riders have been asked to form themselves into a formal body under the National Union of the Road Transport Workers (NURTW), which will help in organizing them, but they have refused to do that.

This is not the first time the Lagos State government will be announcing a ban on commercial motorcyclists in the state. Former Lagos State governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola, issued an okada ban in 2012, restricting their operation in certain parts of the states, however, they have since returned to all the routes they were banned from. That being said, this incoming ban seems certain because it is the first time an immediate alternative is provided (buses) to provide an easy landing for road users.

One thing is sure, with the rising insecurity levels in the state and the use of okada to perpetuate all kinds of crime in different parts of Lagos metropolis, it does seem like okada riders have run their course in Lagos state. The state command of the Nigeria Police Force released a report that between January and early May, okada riders have been responsible for 83 percent of 385 cases of avoidable fatal accidents in the state. Also, they have been involved in 218 criminal incidents with 480 guns of various calibers seized.

The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Hakeem Odumosu further reiterated the above facts when he said:

“The menace of okada operators does not end with avoidable accidents. Crime reports from the field have shown that a greater percentage of crimes ranging from armed robbery, cultism, kidnapping, murder, burglary, and stealing to traffic robbery, carjacking, and cash snatching from bank customers are attributable to hoodlums who operate on okada. The nuisance constituted by the okada operators on Lagos roads has become a danger to law-abiding citizens.”

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Gunmen abduct Kwara APC chairman’s wife, daughter in midnight raid

Gunmen suspected to be kidnappers have abducted the wife and daughter of Alhaji Muhammad Swasun, Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Patigi Local Government Area of Kwara State.

The victims, identified as Hajiya Fatima and her daughter Amina, were seized on Sunday, September 7, at night when a five-man armed gang stormed the party chairman’s residence in Sakpefu.

Eyewitness accounts revealed that the attackers scaled the compound fence and opened fire indiscriminately to terrify residents before breaking into one of the rooms.

“They entered into one of the rooms where they found his wife and daughter and took them away, shooting into the air,” a party executive told reporters, adding that the chairman narrowly escaped being kidnapped himself.

Another APC member confirmed that the gunmen operated for several minutes before whisking the women to an undisclosed location.

“The bandits abducted his wife, Hajiya Fatima, and his daughter, Amina, and took them to an unknown destination,” the source explained, according to Vanguard.

The latest abduction has heightened anxiety in Patigi, a region already grappling with recurring cases of kidnapping.

Residents have repeatedly urged the government and security operatives in recent months to intensify efforts to curb the menace.

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Ace Comedian Ali Baba evicted from Victoria Island property over legal dispute

Veteran Nigerian comedian Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome, popularly known as Ali Baba, has been evicted from his luxurious, multi-million-naira property located in Victoria Island due to a court dispute.

The property, which was purchased for ₦220 million by Ali Baba, is the subject of an ownership dispute at the Federal High Court.

Amid the legal dispute, Ali Baba and his company, XQZMOI TV, were evicted from the property located at 324A Akin Ogunlewe Street.

The eviction was carried out by bailiffs of the Federal High Court following a writ of possession signed on August 15, 2025.

The property in question was initially sold to Ali Baba by the Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) in 2021 for ₦220 million.

At the time, AMCON claimed it was recovering debts allegedly owed by Harold Expansion Industries Nigeria Limited.

But Harold Expansion disputed the debt and counterclaimed that they had already made repayments. Their lawyer, Benjamin Olayiwola Sadibo, insisted that the property was sold wrongfully.

On July 31, 2025, Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa of the Federal High Court delivered a verdict that changed everything as he dismissed AMCON’s case, ruling that the corporation had failed to provide convincing evidence of the alleged debt.

The Justice stressed that AMCON did not even present a statement of account to back its claims a fatal omission for a creditor. Worse still, AMCON did not file a defence against Harold Expansion’s counterclaim, leaving the court with no choice but to side with the company.

In addition to ordering the property to be returned to the family of its original owner, the judge also imposed ₦500 million in damages on AMCON.

Ali Baba’s culpability in the case came as a result of the timing of the purchase. Records show that he purchased the property while the case was still in court, despite an existing preservation order.

He was said to have been a tenant of the property’s original owner before AMCON evicted the family and sold it.

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Police summon El-Rufai, other Kaduna ADC chieftains over alleged criminal conspiracy

Anti-Open Grazing

The Kaduna Command of the Nigerian Police has summoned former Governor of the state, Malam Nasiru El-Rufai, and other top chieftains of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
In the summons letter dated September 4, 2025, the ADC members were invited for questioning over alleged incitement of public disturbance, criminal conspiracy, mischief, and causing grievous hurt.

Signed by the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Uzainu Abdullahi, the letter said the invited individuals are required to come and clarify the allegations against them.

“This Department is currently investigating the above-mentioned case involving the following members of your party. You are requested to come along with them to SCID to clarify allegations reported against them by the complainants on 8th September, 2025.

“Mal. Nasir El-Rufa’i, Bashir Sa’idu, Jafaru Sani, Ubaidullah Mohammed, aka 30, Nasiru Maikano, Aminu Abita, and Ahmed Rufa’i Hussaini, aka Mikiya,” the letter reads.

Sani, one of the invited members and ADC North-West Vice Chairman, told Daily Trust that he learned of the invitation through social media.

“Yes, most of us only saw the statement on social media,” he said, declining further comments.

The development followed the heated exchanges between the Kaduna State government and El-Rufai over the violence that rocked an ADC meeting in the state last week.

The government accused the former Governor of plotting to cause destabilisation in the state through provocative actions and inflammatory statements.

In a statement signed by Dr. Suleiman Shuaibu, the Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, the government said it wouldn’t sit idle and watch El-Rufai plunge the state back into violence, division, and insecurity.

“This Government will not fold its arms and allow a discredited former leader, who left the state in ruins, to ignite chaos and plunge the state into another era of ethno-religious tension, insecurity, and economic stagnation,” the statement read.

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