LCCI urges Lagos State to review policy on banned motorcycles

BY NAOMI UZOR

The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, LCCI, has urged the Lagos State House of Assembly to review the policy of minimum of 200cc (cubic centimeters) capacity motorcycles for use by courier companies and dispatch riders of corporate bodies.

In a release by the Director General of LCCI, Mr. Muda Yusuf, he said the specification of a minimum of 200cc capacity motorcycles for courier companies and dispatch riders in Lagos State is posing a major threat to the businesses of courier companies and other stakeholders in Lagos state, adding that many companies that engage in-house dispatch riders for prompt delivery of sensitive documents and servicing of customer outlets are currently in a dilemma. He added that  many courier firms and other corporate bodies in the state are now delivering mails on foot.

He said 200 cc capacity motorcycles are generally not available in the country as they are in the range of power bikes, not commonly used for mail delivery and other commercial purposes.  This scarcity has created room for all manner of malpractices including falsification and relabeling of lower capacity motorbikes as 200cc and above.

“The cost of a motorcycle of 200cc capacity and above, where available, is in the region of N500,000 to N1 million, depending on the brand.  This implies that for a firm that needs to replace 10 of the motorcycles, a minimum of N5 million to N10million will be required.  Many courier companies have an upwards of 50 motorcycles. For most of the small players in that sector, this may be the end of the road for their enterprises.