16th September, 2011
Some residents of Lagos Mainland Local Government Area on Thursday cried out over the increasing insecurity of lives and property and urged the Lagos State Government to come to their aid.
A cross section of residents told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday that hoodlums were having a field day in the area and the police had been unable to curb their activities.
Mr. Taiwo Oguntoyinbo, a businessman who resides at Ebute-Meta East and operates a business centre on Herbert Macaulay Way, said he was a victim of armed robbers on August 13.
“I was fast asleep when I suddenly heard a hard kick on my door and some strange voices asking me to open the door,†he said.
Oguntoyinbo said that the robbers, who were well armed, asked him and his family members to lie down on the ground as they carted away their valuables.
“We were also beaten mercilessly after which they proceeded to rob other tenants in the building,†he said.
Oguntoyinbo said that calls to the police after the incident yielded no response.
Mrs. Abiodun Bello, a landlady whose property is also on Herbert Macaulay Way, said that the insecurity had prevailed for a long time and many lived in fear.
Bello told NAN that it was not unusual to hear gunshots almost everyday in the area, a situation, she said, was beginning to affect not only the residents, but also businesses in the locality.
She said some petrol stations and companies had fallen victim of armed robbers a number of times.
The landlady urged the government to provide sophisticated weapons for the police and boost their welfare, explaining that such an action would encourage them to be more effective.
She said better security by the police was more imperative now in the ’Ember’ months with its attendant rise in crime.
Mr. Desola Abina, a car dealer who also resides in Ebute Meta, told NAN that he was at an Oando petrol station on Herbert Macaulay Street sometime in August when robbers struck, causing many to flee.
He said the robbers shot into the air to scare people off and went away with some money.
Abina called on the police to intensify security patrols as the year was running out.
Mr. Ibrahim Ahmed, an automobile engineer who has a workshop on Apapa Road, said he had been closing early due to insecurity and appealed to the police to curb the menace of the robbers.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Samuel Jinadu, denied that the police did not respond to distress calls.
He said the police had increased patrols of the area by posting more men to some “black spots,†adding that the command was doing everything possible to ensure safety for all.
Jinadu called on the public to cooperate by reporting suspicious movements and gatherings in the area.