How I was robbed in 1999 – Fashola

The Minister for Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola on Thursday supported the ban of motorcycles by the Lagos State Government, saying Okada are usually used to commit crimes in the state.

He recalled how he was robbed in 1999 on his bed in Lagos, saying Okada should not be a mode of transportation in a state like Lagos.

He spoke today at the fourth lecture on “Security of citizens as a social contract” organised by the United Action for Change (UAC) in Lagos.

The minister, who was Governor of the state between 2007 to 2015 said, “I was robbed in my home, in fact on my bed in 1999.”

He stressed that organized crimes have become dynamic and motorcycles usually aid such.

“As a Centre of Excellence, motorcycles cannot be our preferred mode of transportation”, Fashola said, adding that “motorcycles are means of peddling drugs to children even under watch of parents without knowing.”

Fashola called on stakeholders to assist the government in combating crimes in the country.

He said security challenge is not only peculiar to Nigeria and urged members of the public to support the fight against insecurity by supplying information to the appropriate authorities.

Fashola advocated for a community policing approach to complement the existing conventional security.

“We have to bring in the community partnership approach in order to complement the traditional policing that we have. Situating the current outfit under command and control in the main system; that way, there will be no arguments,” he said.

According to him, “criminals are aware that people don’t keep money at homes again now they diversified into kidnapping people for ransom”.

“Human Trafficking is another organized crime. People should be careful migrating abroad without papers. People have become accidental slaves. The perpetrators of the crimes are living in mansion exploiting desperate and frustrated young people,” he added.

A former Inspector General of Police and Chairman of the occasion, Solomon Arase, advocated regional security “to fill some lacuna left by the enforcement officials.”