Bloody clashes in the Mile 12, Ketu area of Lagos
State on Thursday left no fewer than 10 persons dead and about 100 others
injured.
Among the dead were two schoolchildren, traders,
artisans and residents.
A two-year-old boy, Andrew Daniel, was abducted by
some hoodlums and taken away after his father, Igba, was attacked with machetes
and left for the dead.
The PUNCH, which witnessed part of the clashes as it
unfolded, counted no fewer than 40 vehicles that were either burnt or
vandalised in the Agiliti area of Ketu.
Two churches and over 20 houses were equally set
ablaze and hundreds of residents rendered homeless in Maidan community as a
result of the violence which was said to have broken out after a disagreement
between some Yoruba and Hausa in the area.
Motorcycles, sewing machines and other working tools
were also destroyed while some shops were looted and razed.
Corpses of slain residents, who were either burnt or
beheaded, littered the roads as of 5pm when one of our correspondents left the
battle areas.
Despite the heavy presence of security personnel,
the hoodlums, mostly Hausa, who wielded bows, arrows, cutlasses, charms and
stones, refused to vacate the roads.
They also attacked the Lagos State Commissioner of
Police, Fatai Owoseni, who tried to calm them down before leaving the community
around 1pm.
After the situation had been brought under control
by the police, officials of the Rapid Response Squad and military officers, no
fewer than 70 suspects were arrested.
It was gathered that the fight started on Tuesday at
the Agiliti area after some residents attacked a motorcycle rider for riding
against traffic and almost knocking down a pregnant woman.
A resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity,
said, “The motorcycle rider, a Hausa, almost hit a pregnant woman and people
challenged him for riding against traffic.
“Because he didn’t understand English, he
misunderstood them and attacked them, which started a fight. A man, who took up
the fight with the Hausa man, stabbed him. The Hausa man also stabbed the man.”
The resident said on Wednesday the Hausa apprehended
a Yoruba motorcyclist, who committed a similar offence, and attacked him.
“The Hausa people dragged him on the tarred road and
I saw how his skin peeled while he raised the alarm. People told me to keep
quiet that it was ordinary motorcycle they were dragging.
“But when they took a closer look and discovered it
was a human being, they tried to rescue him but he was dead,” he said.
The clash was said to have aggravated by Wednesday
night as the Yoruba allegedly attacked the Hausa residents, where one person
allegedly died.
By Thursday morning, the Hausa reportedly mobilised
to avenge the death of their men, but were pushed back by the Yoruba.
Residents told one of our correspondents that the
fight escalated around 11am on Thursday when the police and some soldiers
arrived at the scene and shot at the Yoruba camp, which forced the members to
retreat.
A resident, Jamiu Adio, said the police shot
directly at the men and injured some of them.
He said, “The Yoruba had to run back and that
created an opportunity for the Hausa to enter into the community to wreak
havoc.
“The Hausa, backed by the soldiers and the police,
set schools on fire and started burning vehicles in Agiliti. When they were
done, they broke into Maidan community and burnt 15 houses, including a church.
“They chased a carpenter, Riliwan, and after
catching up with him, they cut him with machetes. They poured fuel on him and
set him on fire. He was burnt to death.”
Our correspondent saw the burnt corpse of the
victim, covered with a cardboard paper.
The only link bridge into the community was also
destroyed by the rampaging Hausa.
A church, PODAM, was equally torched and some of
their equipment vandalised.
A shop owner, Mrs. Bilikis Yusuf, said she lost two
of her sewing machines and some money.
“The Hausa have ruined my life. They looted my
industrial machine, black machine and stole thousands of naira from my
wardrobe. Where will I start from?” she asked.
Another resident, Modinat Adeyemi, said she moved
into the community four months ago, adding that she had lost all her property.
“All I have right now is this blouse I am wearing,”
she added.
One of the residents, Mr. Sunday Nejo, who held his
two schoolchildren with his wife beside him, said he was going to find a place
for his family.
While his wife wept, he said, “I have nothing again.
It is only what we are wearing right now that we have. Every other thing has
been burnt to ashes. We are homeless and helpless.”
In a mechanic garage in the Agiliti area, one of our
correspondents counted 27 burnt vehicles, while a Cherubim and Seraphim Church,
which had just been completed, was equally razed.
Five cars – a Nissan Pathfinder, Sienna, Honda Civic
320 Benz and Toyota Forerunner – were still smouldering when one of our
correspondents visited the area.
The owner of the Benz, Jimoh Jubril, said he bought
it four months ago.
He said, “We were inside the house where we watched
everything happen. The police and the soldiers conspired and shot at our boys
and that allowed the Hausa to come in. This was nothing but a compromise of our
security systems.
“They burnt all our five cars, one of which belonged
to a man that just came to visit me. Another is for the pastor of the burnt
church, while the Benz is mine. I bought it four months ago.’’
A resident, Bola Ariyo, said two schoolchildren were
beheaded by the invaders.
“About four people were killed on this road alone.
Two of them were schoolchildren, who were just returning from school. The Hausa
cut off their heads. There were also two Hausa, who were burnt to death by some
Yoruba.”
A resident, who claimed to know, alleged that the
Hausa invaded a secondary school and allegedly killed four students.
A resident said a popular Igbo trader, who sold gas
in the community, was also hacked to death by the Hausa.
The father of two-year-old Daniel said his son was
seized after the Hausa thought he (father) was dead.
“They hit my head with cutlass and I fell down. They
cut me also in the hand and I pretended to be dead. They checked to see I was
truly dead and when they were satisfied, they left.
“They took my child and were saying, ‘let us go and
kill the child too’. I have not seen my child since then,” he said.
A soldier, who confirmed the account, said he saw
the Hausa taking away the child and he could not tell what they did to the boy.
The victim’s mother was seen by one of our
correspondents weeping as people consoled.
One of our correspondents observed as some soldiers
wrestled with one of the Hausa suspects, who was arrested with a cutlass and a
charm.
A soldier said the suspect was caught red-handed
while setting fire to a vehicle.
He said, “He was one of the masterminds of the
arson. We caught him red-handed and he dared us to come after him, saying we
cannot do anything. We arrested him, but he’s been proving hard and difficult.”
The suspect, along with over 70 others, was later
asked to lie down in the open space as the police tried to send signal for a
bus to convey all the suspects.
Around 3pm, a red LAGBUS arrived at the community to
convey them to the Lagos State Police Command Headquarters.
As a result of the heavy fighting, hundreds of
commuters between Ikorodu and Ketu resorted to trekking.
Fully-loaded BRT buses, heading towards Mile 12 from
Ikorodu, were forced to stop around the Majidun area for several hours while
other vehicles were seen making emergency turning along the highway.
Also, commercial motorcyclists of Hausa origin
deserted Ketu and Mille 12 by Thursday afternoon, leaving many people to trek
distances that they usually covered on bike.
Bands of young men were seen wielding dangerous
weapons like axes, cutlasses, clubs and even rakes between Irawo Bus-stop and
Owode-elede, on the deserted expressway threatening to kill and burn down any
Hausa seen in the area.
When one of our correspondents visited Maidan, a
small neighbourhood close to Mile 12, to assess the situation, angry youths,
who also wielded dangerous weapons, threw foodstuffs like onions, tomatoes and
pepper, said to belong toHausa traders on the road.
At another section, people were also seen untying
rams abandoned by the owners and making away with them.
No comments:
Post a Comment