The struggle for survival

Okada don take our business’, Ndubisi laments as he sits at the back seat of his tricycle locally known as the ‘Keke NAPEP’. Like other operators, he has been on the queue since 5 a.m loading up passengers and is now taking a break at 9 a.m due to physical and mental exhaustion.

In Africa’s busiest city with a population of 21 million, it goes without saying that there is constantly heavy traffic which makes life even more difficult for commuters, hence the introduction of motor cycles locally known as Okada (was widely welcomed).

The Okada is seen as an easy option due to its ability to weave through a gridlock of other cars, but they were recently restricted to 475 out of the 9,100 roads. As recorded, the two-wheeler was responsible for an average of 16 deaths and 646 injured patients every month. Although the law still allows for their operation, over-zealous law enforcement officers were often quick to make arrests and seizures  at almost any instance due to a lack of proper understanding of the law. This had made a large percentage of the Okada operators ditch their machines.

The disappearance of the Okada from many of the roads led to the takeover by the Keke NAPEP. The new development caught the attention of business-minded individuals and in no time, many purchased the three wheeler. They either operated it themselves or let it out for an average sum of about  N10, 000 weekly for one year after which ownership is passed depending on the agreement. The machine can cost up to N450, 000 if it is brand new or N150, 000 if it’s been used.

Ndubisi used his all his savings to purchase a Keke NAPEP after his electronic repair store was consumed in an inferno. ‘Before, business dey good’, he said.

After deducting his daily cost of business, he was able to take home N5, 000. But as time passed, enforcement agents became lax, leaving the Okada operators to ply both authorised and unauthorised routes. Many of the Keke NAPEP operators are said to be struggling to make up to half of what they were making initially. This has dampened Ndubisi’s resolve to continue in the business and he is frantically searching for a buyer for his machine.

‘Any job I find, I go do am,’ Ndubisi said with determination in his voice, ‘because

I need to feed my family,’ he told me with a tinge of frustration on his face.

Oluwaseyi Lawal