The Abia State government has directed that all private and commercial motorcycles operating in the state should be registered with unique numbers.

It also ordered that all motorcycles impounded following the recent ban in Umuahia, Aba and Ohafia metropolises, pay a fine of N50,000 each to the State government, within thirty days from the day the bikes were impounded.

The State Commissioner for Information, Okey Kanu made this known on Tuesday in Umuahia while briefing Journalists on the outcome of this week’s executive council meeting chaired by Governor Alex Otti.

“Any motorcycle impounded and not retrieved by the owner after thirty days will be forfeited to the Abia State Government,” the Commissioner said.

He disclosed that all motorcycle riders in approved areas of the state must bear unique registration numbers and reflective vests that represent the local governments they ply.

He said the ban on Okada was not taken to cause economic hardship on poor citizens but was applied in the overriding interests of Abia people.

The Commissioner stated unequivocally that the ban on commercial motorcycle operations in Umuahia, Aba and Ohafia metropolises was not reversible.

Meanwhile, the Special Adviser to the Abia State Governor on Media and Publicity, Ferdinand Ekeoma, has expressed concern that the operators of banned tricycles in some South East and South South States have now relocated their operations to Abia State, thus constituting security threats to the Abia environment.

Ekeoma said that there was need to protect the Abia people from any security threat that could arise from unregulated transport operations.

Also, the Chief Security Adviser to Governor Alex Otti on security matters, Navy Commander Mac Donald Ubah, Rtd, said that the state government was being proactive to ensure that some ugly security situation happening in some states of the federation are not experienced in Abia.