Motorcyclists reject government’s helmet

Several months after the use of crash helmet by commercial motorcyclists became compulsory in Benue State, security officials now have their hands full containing the riots by motorcyclists against the joint force of the Federal Road Safety Commission and the Civil Defence Corps.

NEXT investigations revealed that part of the reasons for the low compliance by operators is the allegation that the state committee charged with the implementation of the policy and officials of the road safety commission and some businessmen disagree over which helmet is to be used.

The motorcyclists are particularly displeased that the committee fixed a price of N5,500 for two helmets, a reflective jacket and ID card per motorcyclist. The motorcyclists said the state government was merely using the exercise to exploit them.

Swende Asor, one of the motorcyclists, said that the state officials need to show that they are not being selfish. “They are self-centred, greedy, and deliberately set to frustrate the poor man despite our struggles to survive,” he said.

“Imagine the hundreds of billion of naira they get from the federal allocation which they divert to their private coffers. Yet they still want to extort our little earnings. My friend, see, everyday, from 5am to 8pm on the road, exposed to the scorching sun and accidents to provide food on the table for my family. Now the government wanted to force me to buy a helmet for N5,500.”

Another cyclist said they had expected the state government to subsidise the product for them. “I am not against the use of crash helmets, but government should not have extorted money out of us like that. As far as I am concerned, any helmet that can cover our heads should be allowed to be used,” he said.

The motorcyclists appeared to have the support of road safety officials who, according to them, are more concerned with safety than brand of helmets . Some businessmen who hoped to cash in on the exercise by importing helmets are also not happy with the state committee.

Cheaper on the streets

The traders sell their helmets for N800 while the government-mandated types go for N5,500.

A federal road safety official in Makurdi, Dayo Ajala, told NEXT that the ones on offer by private traders were not in any way inferior to the state government’s helmets.

The secretary to the state government, Audu Achigili, and the chairman of the state committee on helmets, Boga Abuul, recently paid a courtesy visit to the Commissioner of Police in Benue State, Mohammed Ibrahim to solicit support for the enforcement of the purchase and use of the government-issued helmets, which they said are safer than those sold in the open market at cheaper rates.

This has, however, not led to any increase in police crackdown on the cyclists. A senior officer at the police command said the police have no legal basis to prosecute any offender since neither the State House of Assembly nor the Federal Government has passed any law to that effect.