Kano enforces motorcycle regulation law amid rising banditry attacks

The Kano State Government has vowed to “strictly enforce” the state’s Motorcycling and Related Matters (Regulations) Law, 2013, which prohibits carrying passengers on motorcycles within the metropolis.

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The State’s Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Abdulkarim Maude, SAN, stated this in a Kano on Monday.

Mr Maude stated that the law applies to the state’s eight metropolitan local government areas (LGAs). These are the Kano Municipal, Gwale, Dala, Nassarawa, Tarauni, Ungogo, Dawakin Kudu (including Tamburawa, Gurjiya, and Jido Ward), Fagge, and Kumbotso

Mr Maude reminded residents that the law prescribes severe penalties for violators, including up to six months imprisonment, a fine of ₦10,000, and forfeiture of the motorcycle to the state.

The official added that in council areas where commercial motorcycling is permitted, riders must complete mandatory documentation by registering with the Ward Head, the Local Government Works Department, and the Divisional Police Officer of the area.

Mr Maude added that the mandatory documentation enhances security, ensures proper identification, and promotes the orderly conduct of motorcycle transport operations.

Rising banditry attacks

The enforcement of the motorcycling regulation laws follows escalating banditry attacks in remote Kano localities and a concerning influx of motorcycles and riders into the metropolis.

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Attacks by bandits using motorcycles have been recorded in Tsanyawa, Shanono, and Bagwai LGAs in the northern district, resulting in the killing and kidnapping of residents.

Over 25 people were reportedly abducted on Sunday night across three communities in the Shanono Local Government Area.

The Shanono LGA attacks occurred a day after bandits invaded Yan Kamaye in the Tsanyawa LGA, where they kidnapped three persons and killed a 60-year-old woman.

PREMIUM TIMES previously reported how gunmen abducted eight people on Monday at Biresawa, a village located on the border between Kano and the troubled Katsina State.

Proximity to banditry-prone Katsina State is the primary factor behind the wave of attacks in remote Kano localities in LGAs such as Tsanyawa, Kunchi, Shanono, and Bagwai.

READ ALSO: Despair in Sokoto as bandits abduct bride, maids hours to wedding

The bandits strike communities from their hideouts in Katsina, where they have unofficial agreement not to attack communities within that state.

They target remote and vulnerable farming communities and villages in Kano, which are often sparsely policed and lack security infrastructure.

The veneer of Kano as one of the safer states in the North-west has been broken in recent months with the spillover of banditry from neighbouring Katsina State.