The Nigerian automobile manufacturer, Innoson Motors, has introduced its first ever tricycle popularly known as Keke Napep, or Keke Marwa.
Keke Marwa was first introduced into Nigeria in the 1990s by the current National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) boss, Buba Marwa, when he was the Military Administrator of Lagos State. This is why, to date, a lot of Nigerians, especially those in the southwest regard it as Marwa, an eponymous term.
While the tricycle is very common, its name however varies from place to place. For example, a lot of Nigerians call it Keke Napep, a term derived from the initiatives of the National Poverty Eradication Programme (NAPEP) to distribute tricycles to young Nigerians as a way of mitigating poverty around 2004. Since then, the name has stuck to the tongue of virtually every Nigerian.
Keke stands as the most common alternative means of transportation to cars. There are a lot of them on our streets, especially the interior parts of every city. The relevance of Keke on our roads has, however, created a huge demand that has in turn skyrocketed the price. In a conversation with one Mr Chidi, a seller of the tricycle, the price of a tricycle in Nigeria as if 2015 has doubled. A lot of factors are responsible for this, apart from the increase in demand, and one of these is the issue of import charges.
This has inspired Innoson Motors to manufacture its first ever set of tricycles aimed at reducing the current cost of purchase, while offering the same and even more services. Although there has been no official release of its specs, we are sure that the manufacturer of Ikenga, G40, G80 will not compromise on its standards as they are renowned for making rugged automobiles.
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