The Lagos State Police have convicted approximately 1,490 people for various offences in the state, including miscreants, street traders, and traffic offenders, among others.
According to reports, the convicts were among the 1,709 suspects arrested by police officers in the state between June 1 and September 9, 2022.
During this time, the Lagos State Government reviewed the state traffic law that governs commercial motorcyclists in the state.
The review was prompted, among other things, by the lynching of a sound engineer, David Imoh, by suspected commercial motorcyclists in the state’s Lekki area.
As a result of the tragic incident, a ban was placed on the operations of commercial motorcyclists in six local government areas, consisting of Eti Osa, Ikeja, Surulere, Lagos Island, Lagos Mainland and Apapa.
The enforcement of the ban began on June 1 with security agents patrolling the listed LGAs for errant motorcyclists who had been protesting against the ban.
Despite the protest, the government extended the ban to four more LGAs including Kosofe, Oshodi-Isolo, Shomolu, and Mushin, on August 18.
According to statistics obtained from the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, enforcement of the ban on motorcycle operations between June 1 and September 9, 2022, led to the seizure of 4,694 motorcycles from recalcitrant commercial motorcyclists.
In June 2022, 1,885 motorcycles were impounded for contravening the ban. However, a decline was recorded in July with 1,501 motorcycles impounded while August and September accounted for 1,029 and 279 motorcycles respectively.
However, out of the 1,709 persons arrested for contravening traffic laws, and committing other offences in the state, 131 suspects were screened out while a total of 1,578 were charged to court, leading to the conviction of 1,490.
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Out of the 1,578 suspects prosecuted, eight had their cases struck out, 11 were discharged while 69 were still awaiting trial.
The statistics also confirmed the seizure of 26 tricycles from tricycle operators who, among other offences, contravened the traffic laws in the state.
The period also saw the seizure of 106 vehicles for driving against the traffic in the state.
Meanwhile, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr Abiodun Alabi, said the enforcement of the ban on commercial motorcycles in some local governments in the state would be continuous in order to restore sanity to the affected areas.
In a statement by Hundeyin, yesterday, Alabi explained that Lagos, being the commercial capital of the nation, needed to be safe and orderly to attract more investments.
“The enforcement has to be continuous to maintain the tempo that we have attained within so short a time. Many of the seized motorcycles have been crushed, but the most important message that we want to pass across is compliance so that the government does not have to crush any motorcycles,” the police commissioner stressed.
