Manko’s Men Must Sit Up

Armed robbery attacks in Lagos in recent times have skyrocketed and the use of police uniforms by the bandits is worrisome. Only few days ago, the editor of The SUN newspaper was trailed from the bank where he had gone to cash some money and was shot in the head. About N250,000 was snatched from him.

A few days later, his counterpart in The Compass was attacked by armed robbers in police uniforms. His vehicle was snatched and his phones and other valuables taken away.

In Ketu area, many cars have been snatched in recent weeks on Davies Street and its environs and many people have been shot. Daily, robbery attacks are recorded in different parts of Lagos, with cars snatched at gun point, people shot and valuables taken away. Some of the robbery attacks now take place in broad daylight and no area seems to be spared. The resurgence of robbery attacks in Lagos has left many people petrified and the use of police uniforms by the bandits has left many residents confused about who to trust. People no longer know whether they should wait when they are stopped by policemen at night since they are not sure if the men in black are robbers or policemen.

Some robbery operations are carried out by men on motorcycles while others are done by young men on foot or in other vehicles. No matter their mode of operation or where or when the attacks take place, the bandits are always armed with pistols or other types of guns, and they seem to always be a step ahead of the police.

The robbers are emboldened by the guns they carry and the residents are left at their mercy as they can be shot dead. The increase in armed robbery attacks are due to four reasons: The lack of police presence at strategic areas, the absence of community policing, the absence of proper intelligence gathering and the proliferation of illegal arms in the country due to our porous borders.

To be fair to the police, they now embark on more night patrols in some areas, and in Ketu night patrols have driven some robbers away and residents can now sleep more peacefully.

More night patrols are needed in all parts of the state and this is why policemen need to be equipped with the gadgets they need including enough patrol vehicles. They also need to be motivated and the families of those who fall in the line of duty must be taken care of. The reason some policemen do not give their best is because colleagues who died in the line of duty were abandoned and their relatives ended up as destitute.

We call on the state police commissioner, Umar Manko, to deploy his men all over the state, to engage the community more for information gathering and work with the unions of Okada riders to fish out the bad eggs among them. We also call on the Nigeria Customs to do a thorough job and ensure that illegal weapons do not enter the country.