The Kano State government has ordered the police to shut down a branch of Opay in Kano state. Opay is an online payment outlet for commercial tricycle operators.
Opay was closed down during a raid carried out by the Kano state police command over alleged non-compliance with the government rules and directives.
The police officers ordered all the staff and scores of commercial tricycle operators known as Adaidaita Sahu to immediately vacate the premises, threatening anyone who failed to comply with the order risked arrest.
According to reports, the commercial operators were planning to settle their balance for previous night’s work when the police arrived and dispersed them.
The spokesman of the Police Command, DSP Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, who confirmed the incident and said that, the command received an order from Kano state government to close the office.
Haruna said the Opay company didn’t comply with some rules set for it by the state government in order to operate.
Reacting to the closure, the Country Manager of Opay, Iniabasi Akpan said the office was closed for no particular reason adding that before the abrupt closure, the startup never received any formal statement or communication from the Kano State Government.
“We don’t have any official communication from any authority on the reason why it was shut down. So you get the feeling that someone is trying to bully us or someone is trying to play a fast one on us because that’s how vested interest works.”
Akpan said the startup has the formal authorization necessary for it to run in the North-Western state, including payment of tax. He cited as an example of the startup’s successful operation in Lagos – a state known for its variety of stringent regulations.
Akpan assured its teeming customers that they are not out of Kano. “We are not out of Kano. We are still in Kano State and we are still operating. Our operation isn’t shut down, (but) the office is shut down.”
OPay made its Kano debut, launching one of its services, OTrike – a tricycle on demand.
