Nigerian Soldiers On Rampage In Lagos

Soldiers In Lagos Burn BRT Buses, Beat Up BRT Workers By SaharaReporters, New York

Vandalized BRT busesNairalandSoldiers in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital, on Friday unleashed mayhem on the Palmgroove part of the city, in protest of injuries to a fellow soldier who was hit by the driver of a Bus Rapid Transit (bus).

An eyewitness who spoke with SaharaReporters on phone confirmed that the accident occurred in the morning, when a soldier riding a motorcycle was knocked down by the DRT bus.

“Everyone around the area begged the driver but he refused to listen. I didn’t see the soldier close enough to be able to ascertain the extent of his injury, but someone who could make a call to his colleagues in the military surely was not injured to a level where he could not forgive the driver”, he said.

He added that minutes after the call, soldiers in their dozens arrived at the scene and began vandalising all BRT buses on sight.BRT buses set on fire by soldiers on rampage in LagosNairaland

The Army, though, later said the soldier who was hit by the bus actually died.

“Any BRT bus that they could lay their hands on, they set it on fire. I don’t think the buses they burnt were less than seven. You needed to see the flames that went up in the air”, he said.

“The BRT ticker sellers and their other workers were not spared as well. I’m sure some of them have never been beaten in their lives the way they were beaten this morning”.

The incident resulted in traffic gridlock on Ikorodu Road, stretching forward as far as Maryland, and backwards as far as Ketu. It also mean many commuters had to disembark from their vehicles and trek to their places of work and other destinations.

“This is rubbish”, said an angry engineer who had to abandon his vehicle and scuttle to safety to avoid the anger of the rampaging soldiers.

“Is this country so lawless that a group of soldiers can hold thousands of road users to ransom? Soldiers are supposed to help to maintain law and order. If they are the ones who are now breaking the law, it is such a huge shame”.

BRT buses set on fire by soldiers on rampage in LagosNairalandHowever, contrary to the claims of the eyewitnesses, the military released a statement saying the soldier in question actually died. It also denied that soldiers went on rampage, saying instead that hoodlums were the ones who took advantage of the situation to perpetrate violence.

“This morning between, 6:30 and 6:45am, a BRT bus knocked down and killed a soldier around Obainkoro area while on his way to the office”, Army spokesman in the state, Omale Ochagwuba, wrote in a statement.

“The driver of the bus took the body of the soldier into the bus and attempted to drive away. But when the other soldiers who witnessed the incident rushed to the scene, the driver of the bus ran away with the key. The soldiers then secured the vehicle, which was later toed away to safety in our custody.

“​Area boys then took advantage of the incident and started attacking BRT Buses. From observation you will discover that the BRT buses bunt are far away from the scene of the incident and that the BRT bus in particular that killed the soldier was not attacked or vandalized and it is still intact.”

The statement also credited Army personnel “immediately dispatched to the scene” with restoring normalcy to allow free flow of traffic.