LASTMA Officials Dying of High Blood Pressure — Opeifa
Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, Kayode Opeifa has revealed that officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) are increasingly becoming high blood pressure victims as a result of the continued stubbornness of motorists in the state.
The commissioner particularly stressed that officials of the government parastatal stationed in Ikorodu Area of the state have the highest level of high blood pressure in the state compared to LASTMA officials in other areas.
The commissioner, speaking at a public enlightenment and interactive session on the controversial state Road Traffic Law, disclosed that this is due to the recklessness and attitude of commercial motorcyclists, also called okada riders, and commercial bus drivers in the area, despite being aware of the law regulating their activities within the state.
The event, organised by a member of the state House of Assembly, Sanai Agunbiade, representing Ikorodu Constituency I, afforded members of the state government the opportunity to further enlighten the people of the area on the need to obey the law.
“I can emphatically confirm that LASTMA officials in Ikorodu have the highest level of blood pressure above all their colleagues in other areas due to the recklessness and lawlessness of okada riders and commercial vehicle operators in Ikorodu,” Opeifa said.
“Since the law came into existence, the number of victims at the Igbobi Orthopaedic Hospital as well as the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) has reduced by 60 per cent, and this is verifiable. Apart from Ikorodu, most people across the state have become conscious of the law resulting in a 60 per cent reduction in the arrest of errant road users by officials of LASTMA
He disclosed that the number of people who now attend the state Drivers’ Institute has increased by 35 per cent since the government started implementing the law, adding that the state government was particular concerned for the lives of residents and that this was the reason the law was passed.
To make the job easy for both the road users and the law enforcement agents in the state, the commissioner disclosed that the government had concluded arrangement to begin the certification of motorcycle riders in the state.
“We have also planned to provide jobs for those who became jobless as a result of the restriction on the operations of motorcycle riders,” he said. “The state Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation (WAPA) as well as the Ministry of works will help out in this area.”
On his part, Agunbiade explained that the event was organised to allow the people properly understand the law, having received several complaints from residents of the state concerning the law, even though it was meant to regulate the activities of vehicle owners in the state and not to punish people.
In his contribution, the state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Ade Ipaye said the state government showed through the law that it was responsive
“A lot of accidents were happening on the roads because of our recklessness, certainly this is not acceptable,” he said. “The two strokes of engine in okada are the most dangerous pollutants in the world.”
He insisted that the previous traffic law, which was promulgated in 1949 had to be reviewed stressing that this gave birth to the new law.
