Nyok|19 July 2018
In a week's time, commercial tricycles popularly called Keke Napep, plying designated routes in Calabar, Cross River State capital metropolis will be forcefully taken off the road NegroidHaven has confirmed.
Our news outfit got wind of this piece of information in a yesterday phone interview our correspondent had with the person of the State Security Adviser to the Governor of the State, Mr Jude Ngaji.
The security aide to His Excellency the state governor explained that in the bids to ameliorate the inconveniences on the general public caused by the previous curfew, his office had commenced the process of formal identification for operators of commercial tricycles doing business in the state. He added that the initiative would curb crime as well.
Ngaji who directed that members of the general public should refrain from boarding commercial taxis and tricycles without the official means of identification, said there was a one week suspension of the curfew on commercial tricycling beyond 6PM in Calabar pending perception of satisfactory development by his office.
According to Ngaji, 'Any Keke Napep that is on the road without an identification number will be taken off the road, it will be ceased. I know the hardship that the curfew on Keke Napep imposed on the public, but, one thing that the general public should note is that as they enter any Keke Napep, they should look out for the identification number, any commercial tricycle without a number should not be patronised.
'We are now coding all the vehicles and tricycles. One of the reason we stopped Keke Napep beyond 6PM is we wanted to frustrate the commission of crime beyond that period. However, you can see some vehicles now have numbers besides them. Now, if there is any form of criminal activities perpetrated by them, all the affected person needs to do is to identify the vehicle by the number, say the vehicle number was 24.
'Now, if you come to our data bank, you will see 24 —the owner of the vehicle, the driver of the vehicle, where the driver comes from, the passport number, the phone number, and all that will be there plus guarantor details. With that we can check any criminal activity perpetrated by these Keke Napep drivers.
It will be recalled that few months ago because of the upsurge in criminal activities in the state capital, the Cross River State Government (CRSG) had banned commercial tricycling beyond 6PM. With the one week suspension, Keke Napep operators can ply until 7PM.
Nyok
Is the Blogger-in-Chief, Editor-in-Chief & Publisher of NegroidHaven
