Keke Riders Association Gives FG 7 Days Deadline On Apo Killing

 

The National Commercial Tricycle and Motorcycle Owners and Riders Association of Nigeria (NATOMORAS) yesterday gave the Federal Government seven days to set up a commission of inquiry to unravel the killing of nine tricycle operators in Apo,Abuja or else it will shut down the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

NATOMORAS leaders spoke at a one-day seminar on the challenges of tricycle and motorcycle (okada) operators in the FCT.

NATOMORAS Chairman Usman Buba Gwoza lamented that their members were murdered, but he appreciated the support of “good Nigerians”, the Senate and the Human Rights Commission in their battle for justice.

“We call on the Federal Government to immediately set up a commission of enquiry to unravel the mystery behind this inhuman act. Killing of innocent and armless citizens of our great nation should not be tolerated by a caring and loving government. We shall immediately be embarking on a protest throughout the entire FCT, if this is not met within seven days,” he said.

Gwoza said eight years after the banning of commercial motorcycles in the FCT, the administration has refused to fulfil its promise to provide tricycles as alternatives to those affected during the ban.

The association has over 15,000 tricycle and 80,000 okada operators in the FCT, where 20,000 motorcycles have been impounded.

The Senate Committee Chairman on MDGs, Senator Ali Ndume, urged the association to shelve its proposed protest, until the Senate looks into the Apo killings. He, however, warned that the fight against terrorism should not be an excuse to take innocent lives.

Ndume said that there was no law banning the operation of okada, adding that government should not wake up and ban okada in FCT.