MAY 13

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DAILY HERITAGE MONDAY, MAY 13, 2019
Okada: An economy
booster or human killer?
BY EMMA DAVIS, STUDENT, GIJ
IS THE new-found trade of
using motorbikes for commercial
purposes, popularly
known as ‘Okada’ among
the youth, reducing unemployment
rate or sinking
human resources?
Okada was in the 1980s nicknamed
after a local Nigerian airline,
Okada Air, which was
located near Benin City, as a result
of the local familiarity with
the airline at that time. Okada
gradually spread to other parts of
Nigeria from Lagos and gradually
invaded other African countries
like Ghana.
The patronage of Okada had
not been a problem in Ghana as
it was the easiest and cheapest
means of transport in the rural
communities until it leached into
the towns and cities as a means
of transportation convenience
for urban dwellers in Accra, Kumasi
and Cape Coast.
What used to be a means of
transport for rural folks to help
them do their businesses is now a
viable source of livelihood for
many Ghanaian youth. Some
people who have also seen this
sector feasible for investment buy
the motorbikes for young men in
their neighbourhood who are unemployed
or give out the motorbikes
to people who approach
them for the bikes to work with
the bikes and bring in daily takings.
However in 2012, the use of
motorbikes for commercial transport
in Ghana was banned under
Regulation 128(1-4) of the Road
Traffic Regulations. It states:
“The licensing authority shall not
register a motorcycle to carry a
fare-paying passenger.”
The law prevents anyone from
using motorcycle or tricycle for
commercial purposes except for
courier and delivery services,
while it also prevents people
from riding on motorbikes or tricycles
as passengers.
The existing legislation has
not deterred people from operating
Okada business despite the
sometimes fatal consequences.
A family man with three kids,
Sadiq Inusah, who operates
Okada in Ashaiman and Tema
said he joined the business due to
unemployment and severe hardship.
“I have written an application
for a job but over a month now I
haven’t been called. Now, I have
a wife and kids, how do I look
after them? This job is my best
option because I’m not well educated.
Moreover, we earn daily
wages unlike being employed.
Even if a company is set, it cannot
clear all of us from the
streets.”
Inusah lamented about the
frequent arrests by the police
which prevent them from operating
in peace.
“Look at where we are
packed; if they come they will arrest
us. Whether you have licence
or not the fact that you are operating
Okada is enough for them
to arrest you. Over 80 motorbikes
were arrested by the
Ashaiman Divisional Police just
last month even though some of
them have licences. Because of
that there are no Okada operating
at Ashaiman Traffic.”
Saddiq further urged the government
to legalise Okada and
regulate it so that everyone will
benefit.
“Government should register
motorbikes and give them an
amount to pay over a period to
generate revenue. They should
also tag motorbikes so it will be
easy to identify the ones that
flout the laws. Now, if every motorbike
is tagged with a number
and the environment they operate
such as 29; Ashaiman or 2;
Tema, none of the operators will
•Motor riders - are they safe?
be able to steal from passengers
because when they are reported
they can be tracked down,” he
suggested.
In the last six years, the
‘Okada craze’ has enthralled residents
of Accra, Tema and
Ashaiman because of its ability
to meander through traffic and
get passengers to their destinations
on time even though their
fares are higher than those of
commercial vehicles such as taxis
and trotro.
A regular customer of Okada,
Obed Asante, said he prefers
Okada because it is faster and he
is able to beat traffic, however, he
cautions the riders when they
ride recklessly. Asking him about
his opinion on speculations of
Okada riders stealing from passengers
or coming back at night
to rob homes after dropping passengers
he said, “before I pick
Okada I make sure that I don’t
have valuable things on me. I
haven’t thought of that and I
haven’t experienced that but it
can happen to me so I have taken
protective measures at home.”
A taxi driver who works and
resides in Ashaiman but plies
Tema sometimes, Samuel Doe,
opined that even though the
Okada business affects his trade,
there are customers for everyone.
“It is someone’s source of income
so I’m not really against it
but the way they ride is the problem.
The speed at which they
move without caution is scary,”
he said.
He also stated that Okada
cannot be fully cleared from the
system because of corruption.
“The police arrest them all the
time but you find them operating
the next day. This is because of
the bribes they take. Just recently
some were arrested and taken by
the Tema SWAT team but look
around, they’re all over,” he exclaimed.
Although the intentions of
Okada operators are to work
hard and make a living, their activities
have been labelled as
counterproductive because many
of them flout road traffic regulations.
Some of the riders do not
wear helmets; neither do they
provide helmets for their passengers,
hence putting lives in danger.
Some of them operate
without licence nor insurance.
They also ride recklessly resulting
in road accidents.
Senior doctor at the Accident
and Trauma centre at Tema General
Hospital, Ernest Awinimi,
said “Most accident cases are as a
In the last six years, the ‘Okada craze’ has enthralled residents
of Accra, Tema and Ashaiman because of its ability
to meander through traffic and get passengers to their
destinations on time even though their fares are higher
than those of commercial vehicles such as taxis and
trotro.
result of Okada. There are new
cases every day. If we’re able to
ban Okada, the accidents will reduce
drastically. It is also reducing
our human resource. There
was one case where a manager
was hit by ‘aboboyaa’ (popular
name for tricycle). He initially
thought it was a motorbike and
so he waited for it to pass, only
for him to cross the road and be
smashed by the carrier,” he said.
He added that Okada, nevertheless
came with some benefits
such as helping people to get to
work.
He said, “sometimes when
I’m late for work, I park my car
and pick Okada. One time I had
to come and perform an operation
but the traffic was hectic so I
parked my car and hopped onto
one. I caution the riders when
they ride carelessly but when they
don’t listen I alight and pick another
one.”
In some situations, the motorbikes
are used to commit crimes
such as snatching of valuables
like mobile phones, bags and
purses from people. A resident of
Tema Community 21 Annex,
Akosua Amponsah, stated that
the gates and security measures
implemented in the neighbourhood
were as a result of frequent
attacks by motorbikes.
“One woman who operates a
provision shop in front of her
house was stabbed one night
when she tried to fight with the
thieves as she was closing down.
My daughter’s phone was almost
snatched from her around 7p.m.
when people were still awake. It
became really scary so shops had
to close at nine and wherever you
were in town you had to get
home before 9p.m. because the
motorbikes used to operate at
that time. So the landlords came
up with this initiative,” she said.
With the entire hullabaloo about
the negative implications of Okada,
some authorities are advocating its
legalisation. Minority Chief Whip,
Muntaka Mubarak, addressing Parliament
on Thursday, March 28, 2019
argued that Okada provided jobs for
thousands of youth and so legalising
it would ensure they obey road traffic
regulations.
“Let us review the law to accommodate
Okada operators by mainstreaming
them into our national
transport system so that they can be
identified, registered, licensed and
policed to work within the road traffic
regulations,” he said.
Also the head of education at
the Motor Traffic and Transport
Department (MTTD) of the
Ghana Police service, Superintendent
Alexander Kwaku Obeng,
called for a relook at the law prohibiting
the use of motorcycles for
commercial purposes. He made
this call during a discussion on
JoyFM’s Super Morning Show on
Monday, February 25, 2019.
“The needs of Okada across the
country are different. Lack of availability
of public transport makes
people rely on it. But it is bringing
policing into dispute so until the law
is reviewed, we will continue to arrest
those who use motorcycles for commercial
business, those without the
right costumes and those unregistered,”
he said.
The writer is a level 300 student
of the Ghana Institute of Jour nalism