Date: Thursday, 9 February 2006
Title: Bicycle As Means of Transport
Source: http://allafrica.com/stories/200602090071.html
Remarks: by Chinedu Nworah - Posted to the web February 9, 2006
NIGERIA is at present passing through its worst government policies on public transportation, road - networks, metros, railways, seaways, airways, no food, no water, electricity and above all no social security. Necessity is the mother of invention.
In view of unending arbitrary fuel price hikes, recent bans of 2nd hand auto-spare-parts, tyres and age limitation on imported cars which the poor masses depends on for service and own a car, developing an alternative cheap means of transportation has become imperative to reduce the hardship of free, safe and unhindered mobility of people, goods, and service. Developing good bicycle riding habits amongst the populace offers people-oriented solutions as well as an opportunity to address one major defects in our transportation policy begging for attention, that is building road networks with pedestrian/bicycle sideways.
Planlessness, neglects and insensitivity of the government to basic needs of the people is becoming conduit pipe of wasting our youths of greater tomorrow like the untimely death of Tunji Oyeleru, the Vanguard accomplished photo journalist and Chima Ubani, the great Human rights activities in a fatal road accident. Its also a known fact that many other resourceful and faceless breadwinners have died unnoticed on our bad roads without being fortunate to have foundations like Chima Ubani Foundation set up by Nigeria civic community or attract the visits of their state governors with state packages like Gov. Bola Tinubu's to the widows of Tunji and Chima. As a matter of facts, the challenges constant fuel price hikes and increased cost of living offers now is to create people oriented programmes like promotion of use of bicycle, structures and mechanisms that make living worthy, safe, secured and economical.
Bicycle is today the cheapest, affordable, safest and reliably means of movements of goods, service and people. It is extensively in use in developed countries for sports as well as for routine movement of goods and service. It is not an over-exaggeration to say that in Europe like Germany everybody owns a bike either for going to work or recreation of body. There is no class distinction in ownership and rides bike to farm, stores, shopping, motor/train stations, schools, offices and churches. Even in Germany, USA; Netherlands and other European states, Police use bike for patrols of tight and busy places where free auto-movement is hindered. It is a national affair and in summer, a kind of public holidays is declared with certain main roads or streets (WEINSTRASSE) and routes declared no go area for vehicle on the chosen day. Only people riding bike for pleasure and recreation parades the routes with their bikes, in a carnival like show, eating and taking light refreshments.
All public place like parks, schools, stations, shops, churches, homes, office and hospitals have bike parks. School children and workers are most visible beneficiary of the use of bike and the accompanying facilities provided by the government to cultivate and encourage good biking habit. From and to their various homes and offices, they use it directly or indirectly to connect their buses and trains to work, schools, farms.
In Asia like China, its beyond words to describe the overall economic use of bike in their national life. Micro and Macro business in China patronises bike a lot in distribution of goods and service particularly in home delivery services like water, fastfoods, repairs, domestic appliance and accessories. During my visit to China, I observed that only a phone call does the magic. Its very important to note here that both Germany and China used as example has a very good networks of roads with sidewalks, land, sea and air transportation system that is very efficient and effective yet availability of infrastructures and promotion of good biking habit remain an unofficial policy of the government to balance needs of the haves and have - not. Govt and private investors in each sector sees each others roles as supportive, complementary and overlapping without undue compartmentalisation and fear of competition which promotes quality services.
No monopoly as in Nigeria where luxurious bus owners seemed to have colluded with past and present policy makers not to develop a functional railways transportation system or build a airport and seaports in strategic places like Onitsha - Aba axis for fear of loss of patronages. The same allegation goes to the corporate dealers of generator with regards to poor overall energy supply by NEPA. It is also been alleged that National Road Transport Workers Union are the brains behind the construction of our city roads without pedestrian/bicycle path as is the practice in the western world, as they fear drops in passengers turn-outs. Okada/Motorcycle Union Workers, they say have joined the guilds of road un-development agents who bribe, lobby and influence local govt officials of their respective areas not to maintain, built non develop new road projects so that people will continue to suffer and patronise them particularly during raining seasons when our streets are marshy and wat erlogged because of poor drainage system. In the Oil sector, AD leader in the House of Rep. Hon. Wumi Bewaji, painted the picture clearer, "... Government is in the league with a cabal that is into oil importation business, and will not allow Nigeria to have its own functional refinery."
As the cost of living and hardship continues to increase following retrenchment, unemployment as a result of privatisation, banks captialisation, official corruption and unending fuel price hike, PDP govt should act and think quickly towards starting a national campaign for uses of bike as a better alternative towards solving transport problems facing us. The earlier the better. Now or never. Otherwise very soon the government should get ready to deal with more of the likes of late Ken Saro Wiwa and now Dokubo-Asari facing treason trial because they demanded a nation, reparation or compensation for their people who faced poverty, deprivation and extinction from environmental abuse of the oil companies who can neither support nor fund water transportation, the development of road networks, rural electrification and health services in the area where they make billion of dollar profit annually. A deprived and a hungry man is an angry man against the government and could do anyth ing to survive including taking up arms as the last resort. This explains reasons for increased armed robberies, crime, protests, and nationalistic agitation from the cross-section of Nigeria particularly the Niger Delta. Protest and demonstrations against the ills of society are of fundamental human rights, democratic and non-negotiable whether by minority or majority. It is criminal or fundamental human rights abuse to deny the deprived or aggrieved the rights to freedom of expression, choice and freewill to determine their destiny where the state fails in its social contract obligations as is the case of both Nigeria govt. and oil companies to the masses and Niger Delta respectively. Constitutional means of settling scores is better than violence.
Its however unfair and undemocratic to perceive agitation of any kind by Nigerians against hunger, poverty, marginalisation, unemployment, Separation, Resource control and environmental pollution as a plot to overthrew govt. Its an act of giving a dog a bad name in order to hang it. The federal govt should be careful not to replay another Sanni Abacha and Ken Saro Wiwa sage blunder in the ongoing Dokubo-Asari treason trial. For daily in Nigeria, many more Ken Saro Wiwas, Isaac Adakas, MKO Abiolas, Dele Giwas, Ganis, Williams, Chima Ubanis, and Tunji Oyelerus are born to continue the struggle in more dynamic ways than these martyrs of our time. Listening and recognition of minorities human rights to their future, job creations, empowering the masses through micro and macro credits, regular power supply, water supply, developing good roads networks with sidewalks/bikepaths, health, socio-economic security system that helps Nigerians to help themselves to be meaningfully and pro fitably employed in their chosen fields, to my mind is a better way of contending with increasing number of aggrieved Nigerians ready to go extra miles to fight this corrupt government, with breaking records of two of their governors wanted and facing trial for money laundry in Britain, the first lady of blessed memory corruptly wanted nearly all her kinsmen to be beneficial of federal govt. properties in Lagos offered for sale by then Minister of Works and Housing, Mrs Osomo including an unexplained source of fund for acquisition of mansion in Brooklyn, New York for over 75 million naira by her only lawyer son, Olumuyiwa Obasanjo who just graduated from university. Many of his counterparts in Nigeria have no shelter, job, food and hopes of living under Eko bridge talkless of owing a mansion or eating three square meals a day nor getting good education at all because of official corruption and greediness of our national leadership. Its because of corruption and insensitivity to public opinions that Col. Ahmadu Ali of Ali - Must-Go fame who sponsored the murdering of agitating students in 1978 for protesting tuition fee hike in schools, was reengineered to become current PDP Chairman, and in business as usual tried to plant his wife Madam Marian Ali and Son, Dr Ogagala Adah Ali to Board of NPA and Board Member of NRC respectively. To add pepper to injury he awarded 43 million naira contract to himself and his family to print voters registration cards. Other examples are VP Atiku's controversial 1.7 million dollar mansion in USA; the Anambra State unresolved stolen mandate war, the fall of Education Minister, Prof. Fabian Osiju over 50 million lobby scandal etc.
The consequences of these and eight times fuel price hike today is that many more children are going to drop-out from schools because their poor parents cannot afford the hiked transport cost, not to dream of beyond - reach school fees. Whereas our leaders seeks medical treatment overseas with tax payers money, many more poor sick masses will die as a result of non availability of good medical facilities, increased transport cost to hospital or stressful use of bad roads. Conclusively, as Banks re-capitalises, Nigeria joins other technologically developed nations to introduce e-passport in 2006 to redeem its image over that Oluwole Police discovery of 40,000 passports, 50,000 assorted foreign cheque, 10,000 USA Postal money order (See This Day 09. 01. 05); Offers Zero duty for necessities, medicaments, industrial machinery and equipment under an improved new tariff structure regime as a giant step forwards to meeting ECOWAS central external tariff, bans importation of second hand Spare-parts to encourage consumption of local new production according to Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, the Finance Minister.
Above all as we celebrate Oil boom, Debt cancellation and loots recoveries, I want to call on the government to take just a fragment of these Surplus to start a people-Oriented Bicycle (aka Long John or Keke) riding campaign nationwide as an economic palliatives to the deprived and reducing hardship faced by Nigerians as a result of constant fuel price hikes and use of bad roads. Development good bike riding culture/habit starts with developing good roads networks with BIKEPATHS to ensure safety and security of lives and properties.
In this regards federal, State and Local Govt. should invest more in new roads projects with special attention to an in-built pedestrian/bicycle paths as it obtainable in planned cities roads world-wide. Our roads are virtually without bold road signs and marking. Construction Companies should be called to order to this effect by the appropriate control agency. In Germany the home of construction giant, Julius Berger, roads are built with good bold Road Signs and Marking, but unfortunately in Nigeria Julius Berger is born again. Consolidated Construction Company and Julius Berger should be closely watched particularly in the reviewed 82 km Onitsha-Owerri road project. Sidewalks, roads signs/markings, fly-overs should be provided and added in deserved places even if not in original plan.
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