Nasarawa youths protest use of identity jackets
NAN-HG-5
Youths
By Awayi Kuje
Masaka (Nasarawa State), Aug. 16, 2017 (NAN) Some youths, acting under the aegis of Okada riders in Nasarawa State, are protesting against the introduction of reflective jackets by Karu Local Government Council.
The council’s Director of Personnel Management (DPM), Mr Ishaku Ibrahim, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday at Masaka that the irate youths also attacked and destroyed property belonging to the supplier of the jackets.
Ibrahim explained that the council decided to introduce and enforce the use of the jackets by commercial motorcycle operators in the area for security reasons.
“The council had introduced the reflective jackets so as to curtail criminal activities in the area and to ensure peace,’’ he said.
The official confirmed that Mr Bashir Zaki, the Chairman of Obo Pataki Limited, is one of the council’s consultants who was asked to sell each jacket to Okada riders at the rate of N3,000.
“Why we choose to introduce the reflective jacket is that some Okada riders are hiding under the umbrella of the business to perpetrate criminal activities in Karu; that is why we said that Okada riders should have identification number so as to be identified and fish out criminal elements among them, if any,” the director emphasised.
The victim of the attack, Mr Modibbo Suleiman-Masaka, told newsmen that he lost more than N3.7 million to the incident.
Suleiman-Masaka, who is the National Chairman, Board of Trustees (BOT) of Modibbo Haruna Buhari Charity Organisation (BCO), an NGO, claimed that about 500 commercial motorcycle operators (Okada riders) attacked the group’s secretariat.
He decried the level of destruction done to the secretariat, saying that he lost N833,000 cash in addition to the destroyed property.
“I don’t even know what make them to attack the secretariat. As an NGO, when I heard that the management of Karu Local Government are selling reflective jackets to Okada riders at the rate of N3,000 as a means of identification in order to curtail criminal activities and ensure peace in the area.
“Then I said, as part of our commitment to assist the less privileged ones, any Okada rider that is residing from Masaka to Auta Balefi area, I will support each of them with N500 and they will pay only N2,500 instead of N3,000 to those selling the jackets and I have so far paid for 380 jackets and some of them have been coming to appreciate my efforts.
“Then, I was in my secretariat when I saw the Chairman of Obo Pataki Limited, Mr Bashir Zaki, with 15 members of his staff that they are in the secretariat to inform me that the jackets I have paid for remaining only 50 out of the 380 jackets paid, did I still want to pay for more.
`As we are discussing, I saw over 500 Okada riders, some of them with big stones, cutlasses, scissors and big sticks, among other weapons, shouting that they want to kill the chairman of Obo Pataki Limited, Mr Bashir Zaki, with his staff; he is the man in charge of selling the jackets.
“As you can see by yourself on the level of destruction done to the secretariat by the Okada riders as they did not only break windows, doors but they also destroyed valuable items and stole my Techno and Bontel handset, and stole my N833,000 cash,” he said.
On his part, Zaki wondered why Okada riders wanted to kill him and his staff.
“As you can see these documents, the management of Karu Local Government Council served security agencies with letters after the joint peace and security meeting of the area on the need for Okada riders to buy the jacket at the rate of N3,000.
“We are in the secretariat on Monday (Aug. 14) to brief the NGO BOT chairman on the numbers of reflective jackets he paid for Okada riders operating from Masaka to Auta Balefi and when we are discussing, we saw okada riders stoning the NGO secretariat that they want to kill us,” he said.
However, the spokesman of the State Police Command, DSP Kennedy Idirisu, said that he was yet to be briefed on the development by the DPO of Masaka and promised to inform newsmen on police efforts.
NAN also reports that no official of the Okada riders in the area could be reached for comments as they were said to have fled arrest.
NAN also reports that the DPO of Masaka Police Divisional Office, the area officials of the Department of State Security Service and the council’s director of personnel management, were among other public officials that visited the scene of the attack shortly after the news conference. (NAN)
AKW/MST
Edited by Muhammad Suleiman Tola