Legalizing Okada can’t be deemed as job creation - Tricycle operators to Mahama

An Association calling itself The Tricycle Operators Association of the North East Region has rejected proposals by John Dramani Mahama in creating jobs with legalizing of Okada insisting that cannot be deemed as job creation.

According to the Association, the move by the former President is not only lazy but a deliberate attempt to hoodwink the electorate just to get their votes.

The Association believes that an endorsement for the legalization of Okada is an endorsement for armed robbery because there is no crime that has been committed in the country without the use of motorbikes.

“We think that legalizing Okada in the country is not only a lazy man’s way of job creation but a deliberate attempt to hoodwink the electorate just to get their votes.

"By the way, the legalization of Okada cannot be viewed as job creation. Okada is not done with sheer strength. One needs a motorcycle in order to venture into that life-threatening business. Until H.E the Vice President boldly came out to reject the idea of legalizing Okada, and proferred a better alternative, former president Mahama never included how they’ll help young men interested in Okada business acquire motorbikes in their promise,” they revealed at a press conference on Monday.

According to the group, It is quite populist, demeaning and hyperbolic to classify the legalization of Okada as job creation and compare it with a good initiative like the Nation Builders Corps (NABCO).

“Whereas we see it as the right of those making such promises to Ghanaians, we also wish to make our views on the matter public for the media to amplify to the world in order for the Ghanaian populace to make a fair judgment.

"We, the Tricycle Operators of the North East region would wish to state without any equivocation that the legalization of Okada is an endorsement of armed robbery, considering the fact that no single robbery is done without the use of motorbikes (Okada).

"The twin problems of joblessness and heavy traffic in our cities cannot be addressed with a lazy and poorly thought out policy like Okada legalization. We need to invest heavily into expanding our road network and the railway sector like the government is doing. We risk having a good number of our youth decapitated in no time due to the dangers they’ll face on the road in the unfortunate event of Okada being legalized. We equally risk a surge in the crime and robbery rate as criminals will take advantage of the legalization of Okada and get emboldened to terrorize we the innocent citizens with motorbikes.

"We therefore summarily reject the legalization of Okada because,” the group said at the conference addressed by its Chairman Makom Abu.