Business Insider SSA just happened to be in the area as a crowd of drivers, confiscated motorbikes, stranded passengers forced to end their rides prematurely, and Police gathered at the side of the road.
Two police officers in a pickup van told Business Insider SSA they could not divulge why they were seizing the motorbikes and that they were working on orders from above.
Lagos State distances itself from actions of Police
Just last week, when asked if the State would release motorcycles in its custody that had been seized at an earlier time, Lagos state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Ade Ipaye, said the following;
“Lagos State Government cannot release the motorcycles because they were seized by the police which is not an agency of the State government.”
Bikes may have been seized because Ozumba Mbadiwe is a restricted road
In November of 2017, the Lagos state government released a list of hundreds of restricted routes that Okadas and Kekes were to avoid. In March of this year, the Lagos State Task Force on Environmental Sanitation and Special Offences impounded 115 motorcycles, 22 of which belonged to ride-hailing companies, for using the restricted roads.
Ozumba Mbadiwe is one of the restricted roads and could be the reason why this latest round of confiscation happened.
If they were seized for using a restricted road, why didn't the Police just say so?
Once again, the Police that spoke to Business Insider SSA said they were following "orders from above." They did not elaborate on why the bikes were seized. Whatever the reason, we are yet to find out.
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