Rapid Response Squad (RRS) operatives yesterday arrested seven persons in Ejigbo area of Lagos after a bloody clash between hoodlums.
Several persons were injured in the fight between Agbole and Coker boys around the NNPC jetty.
The fight was over the auto spare parts bought by one of the Agbole boys from Coker.
The parts bought about a week ago were said to have become faulty, prompting the buyer to seek a refund.
But the trader was said to have refused to refund the money, provoking the buyer’s anger.
He was said to have gone and brought some of his boys who attacked the Coker boys.
The Coker boys also later stormed Ejigbo and attacked the Agbole boys, injuring many. Four vehicles parked on the street were vandalised.
It took the intervention of the RRS Commander, Olatunji Disu, an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) and his team, the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), and the traditional ruler in the area to restore calm.
The command’s spokesperson, Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent of Police (SP), said the injured were taken to the hospital.
She added that the suspects have been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), Panti, Yaba, Lagos Mainland.
Operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) Sunday arrested seven persons in the Ejigbo area of Lagos after a bloody clash between hoodlums.
The fight which broke out between Agbole and Coker boys around the NNPC jetty, left several people injured.
It was gathered that trouble erupted over auto spare parts but by one of the Agbole boys from Coker.
The ware which was bought about a week ago was said to have been faulty, prompting the buyer to seek a refund.
But the trader was said to have denied refunding the money, an action which Angered the buyer.
He was said to have gone and brought some of his boys who attacked the Coker boys.
In retaliation, the Coker boys stormed Ejigbo and attacked the Agbole boys, injuring many others and four vehicles parked on the street were vandalised.
It took the intervention of the RRS Commander, Olatunji Disu, an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) and his team, the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), as well as the traditional ruler in the area.
Confirming the incident, the state command’s spokesperson, Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent of Police (SP) said the injured were taken to the hospital.
She added that the suspects have been transferred to State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), Panti.
A man identified as Rasheed Olanrewaju, 31, has been killed and two others injured after vigilant members of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) and hoodlums clashed in Ajagunle, a Lagos suburb.
The incident which occurred around 10pmon Tuesday at Arumo Street, caused panic among residents as buildings were torched by the rampaging youth.
Olanrewaju, a labourer at Wharf was said to have gone out to buy something to eat when stray bullet from the OPC group hit him on his chest, killing him instantly.
Trouble was said to have started after the vigilantes refused to give the youths their share of money collected from a land developer.
It was gathered that an OPC leader in the area identified as Ezekiel collected money from a man who wanted to develop his land in the area, without settling other groups who went to the man for their share.
But their demand was swiftly turned down by the developer who disclosed that he has given huge sum of money to the said Ezekiel for settlement of the ‘boys’, prompting the hoodlums to engage the vigilantes in a duel.
The Nation gathered that the fight lasted over two hours, with residents scampering for safety for fear of being hit by stray bullets.
It was learnt that some of the residents of Ezie lane, Ezie Street, Ugbonwankwo and adjoining streets took cover inside their homes as sporadic gunshots were fired by each faction.
They were also said to have thrown bottles and other dangerous weapons without caution.
It was gathered that one of the injured persons was an OPC member who works in a neighbouring street, while one of the two persons arrested by the police allegedly sustained amput injury.
At the time The Nation visited the street, anti-riot and Rapid Response Squad (RRS) policemen on virtually all the streets in the neighbourhood, with pockets of angry, grumbling youths around the Ezie lane junction.
The huge police presence, residents said, should be sustained for at least a week to prevent a reoccurrence.
According to a resident who refused to be named, the policemen who first responded to the distress call were stoned by the hoodlums who torched the OPC office and a nearby kiosk, before reinforcement was sent from the police command and RRS.
Another witness, Patricia Udofia told The Nation that it was not the first time hoodlums and vigilantes would clash in the neighbourhood.
She said they usually attacked themselves, adding that the hoodlums always harass people for people.
“It is not the first time. They are always having issues. But it has been long they fought last. I do not really know what happened but we heard it is about money that the vigilantes refused to share.
“We heard money was given to Ezekiel but he did not give the other group their share. The two groups were attacking themselves with guns and other weapons.
“Some people said Ezekiel’s group killed one person belonging to the opposing camo, while others said the person killed was just an innocent boy,” she said.
At the deceased’s house, The Nation gathered that he was a labourer at Wharf and that he was buried on Monday morning in accordance to Islamic rites.
Confirming the incident, the state command’s spokesperson, Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent of Police (SP) said two suspects were arrested.
She said: “Yes, there was a fight between area boys and Vigilante group members at Arumo Street in Ajegunle over ‘Omo onile’ money. The Commander of the Vigilante group allegedly collected the money and refused to share with the area boys.
“As a result, the hoodlums attacked the vigilantes and set their office, as well as a nearby kiosk ablaze. In the process, the vigilantes shot and killed one person.
“The police went to the scene and restored calm. Two persons were arrested, while two live and four expended cartridges were recovered. The case is under investigation.”
Ebonyi State police command says it foiled an attempt at the weekend by some suspected hoodlums to set a police station at Noyo in Ikwo local government area of the state on fire.
The Commissioner of Police in the State, Peace Ibekwe-Abdallah said in a statement that all effort made by hoodlums to set the police station on fire was aborted by the policemen on duty.
The statement read in part: “The gang who operated with AK47 rifles poured petrol and threw fire into the DPO’s Office before they were repelled by the superior fire power of officers on duty.
“All the Officers and men at the Station are safe except a guard who sustained injury during the attack.
“The Police had since after the incident began trailing the suspected hoodlums.”
The CP enjoined members of the public to always provide useful information to the Police to enable them to carry out their operations effectively.
Unknown gunmen Thursday killed a Police Sergeant Sunday Adoga, in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital.
Also killed by the suspected criminals was a man whose identity was yet to be known. He was hit by stray bullet.
The state Police command confirmed the deaths.
The Police spokesman, Ahmad Mohammad, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said the hoodlums laid ambush and opened fire on Adoga’s patrol Van, killing him on the spot.
The incident reportedly happened between Garrison and waterlines junction between 9 and 10 am. The Police have vowed that the perpetrators of the dastardly act will never go scot-free, although they are yet to be apprehended.
The statement by Mohammad said, “We are deeply saddened by the senseless killings of Sgt. Sunday Adoga, and the other innocent citizen, who were ambushed at different locations by the marauding gang Thursday, along Garrison and waterlines junctions.
“Sadly, today’s event once again demonstrated the profound danger our men face and witness in daily bases. Police officers put their lives on the line every day to confront crime and violence in our communities and society at large.
“As for the criminals, they can run but it’s just a matter of time, we will caught up with them and bring them to justice.”
The incident Thursday led to commuters and motorists in the area of crime to scamper for safety as the gunmen shot sporadically, between the busy Garrison and waterlines area of Port Harcourt/Aba road. Both passengers and motorists reportedly abandoned their vehicles and ran for their lives.
Some of the passengers who were close to the scene of crime jumped through bus windows some of them sustained injuries especially on their legs and arms. They thought the boys invaded the INEC office which is close to the waterline junction, where the Police officer was reportedly killed.
One of the passengers who narrated his ordeal to the Nation said, “We boarded the coaster vehicle at Park, going to Eleme junction. When we got to close to Garrison junction we began to hear sound of gunshots, before we got there (Garrison), we noticed that vehicles ahead of us had all parked and none was coming from Waterline area. We also parked, after a while, the sound dowsed and movement continued.
“When we got to waterlines we saw boys with guns alighted from a bus, and began to shoot, carelessly, everybody began to look for escape route, passengers, drivers; private car owners abandoned the vehicles and ran. I jumped through the coaster window other followed, i ran into a small hideout everybody came and fail on me, I am now in serious pain.
“A policeman and another man were killed by the suspected hoodlums,” he said.
A Minna High Court judge, Justice Mohammed Maiyaki, was at the weekend beaten up by suspected hoodlums.
He was attacked about 8pm at Katerigi village while travelling for a wedding in Bida, Niger State.
It was learnt that the judge stopped to repair his wife’s car that had electrical problem and asked the villagers for an electrician.
Suspected hoodlums attacked him after recognising him as a judge.
Justice Maiyaki was said to have sustained a deep cut in the head, following the use of sharp objects on him.
He was rescued by his friends from Bida, after a distress call by his wife.
The judge was reportedly taken to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Bida.
Our reporter gathered that an assistant commissioner of police in charge of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) was leading a team of detectives to investigate the matter.
Police spokesman Bala Elkana confirmed the incident.
A trader injured during last Thursday’s violence in Bakkasi section of Ladipo Market at Mushin, Lagos, yesterday relived how he was attacked by hoodlums.
Chinonso Chukwuanni told The Nation that he was terrified on hearing gunshot and seeing a large crowd wielding machetes and bottles.
He said: “I was in my shop that fateful day, trying to attend to a customer when I heard gun shots. Terrified by the gun shots, I ran out of my shop to escape and I saw a large crowd invading our market. They were wielding machetes and bottles, firing sporadically into the air. I ran towards the Toyota Expressway but got injured in the process.
“What surprised me the more was that when I looked closely at the hoodlums, I saw some of them in army uniforms with no name tags. Everybody was just running around without a particular direction just to escape the stray bullets.
“A fellow trader who was not so lucky was hit in the face; he is still in coma in the hospital. Several others sustained injuries and we don’t know why this is happening. Most of the victims were traders in Ode Aladura section of the market known as Bakkasi.”
Another trader, Chukwuma Uroko, called on the Lagos State Government and the Commissioner of Police to ensure that the hoodlums and their sponsors are brought to book.
band of hoodlums yesterday attacked some residents of Pen Cinema in Agege, Lagos.
The gang, otherwise known as One Million Boys, reportedly dispossessed people going to work of their belongings.
They broke the windscreens of motorists in their bid to rob them.
A Keke Marwa operator, simply called Otele, said he was on his way to Ogba when he saw the gang coming.
“I had initially thought they were members of a church but was proved wrong on a closer look. I ran out of my tricycle leaving my passengers behind. I have always heard of these people. I was shocked to see girls in their midst. People took to their heels. Only God knows where they were coming from. It is pathetic. How can I be running for children who are almost my grand children? I thought I was the only one who ran for my life,” he said.
A vulcaniser, who gave his name as Wale, said he had just alighted from a bus when he saw them, adding: “I have always heard about them. How I escaped back into the bus was unbelievable. They were close to 100 in number. I was destabilised. It was a bad thing to start the week with. I thank God I didn’t fall a victim. I saw a woman whose mobile phone and money were stolen by these guys. In tears, she said she was going to return home. It is so unfortunate. What is this country turning into? Can’t anybody handle this group of teenagers? I saw little girls in their midst. The bus driver almost entered the ground because his bus was in the middle of the road. I cried like a child because I felt it was the end.”
A trader, Ranti Joseph, said she was on her way to her shop when she heard ‘e pada e pada’ meaning go back.
She said she first thought it was a fire until a bus driver said those miserable children were coming.
She said: “I heard they damaged windscreens of vehicles in IjuIshaga area and stole from people. Only God knows where they were coming from. The few minutes they passed was something to remember. The government should look into this matter. I heard they were walking from Ikeja.”
A resident, Mr. Saheed Jalingo, said he had once fallen victim to the cult group.
He said he was stripped naked and robbed of his belongings on his way back from a party.
If the pupils of Ago Owu Primary School on Market Lane, Shogunle, a Lagos suburb, are to make a list of their favourite morning duties, it is most unlikely that packing human faeces would be one of them. That, however, is a duty they have had to perform on a daily basis. As a matter of fact, they do not start lessons until the authorities are sure that they have packed all the faeces generated by hoodlums who have turned the school into their colony.
The hoodlums either defecate directly on the floor of the classrooms or wrap their faeces in nylons and drop them in the pupils’ lockers, making the environment messy and unhygienic for learning. Hence, every day, the pupils have to endure ridding the classrooms of feaces, sachets of local herbal gin, used condoms and sundry items the hoodlums abandon in their classrooms.
Since they forced their ways into the premises of the affected schools more than a decade ago, the hoodlums have refused to vacate them in spite of periodic raids carried out by the police. Apart from defecating in the classrooms, they have also vandalised them as well as the store, toilets, fence and furniture, among other items.
The environment, both outside and inside the school was a repulsive sight when our correspondent visited on January 12, 2016.
Opposite the school gate, a shack houses auto mechanics and a block industry while a heap of firewood lay close to its derelict gate. On the left fringe of the school’s entrance lay a hole in the perimeter fence, which offers more than a glimpse of what the school compound looks like from the outside. The scene bears tell tale signs of abandonment, unhygienic learning environment and decrepit state of infrastructure in the school established on October 3, 1980.
Inside the school premises, foul odour oozed out of a block of classrooms close to the left wing of the perimeter fence. Right inside the decrepit classrooms, disused nylons, plastic bottles and human faeces and other unseemly items competed for space. The classrooms, built in 2009 by the immediate past administration of Governor Babatunde Fashola, have become deplorable in the wake of its vandalisation by hoodlums.
There were gaping holes in the roofs of the vandalised classrooms. Many of the furniture, including the desks and tables belonging to students and teachers, are not spared by the hoodlums, a situation that leaves the pupils with inadequate furniture for sitting or writing.
The roofs of some of the classrooms were said to have been brought down by hoodlums during a fight recently.
It was gathered that once the 35-year-old school, which shares the same compound with Folaranmi Primary School, closes at 2 pm, the hoodlums take over its premises,. They defecate in the classrooms and other places they choose and also hide their belongings, including clothes, shoes, marijuana and weapons, there.
“Hoodlums have virtually turned learning here into a nightmare for the teachers and pupils, and the police have not been able to dislodge them,” lamented a source in the school, who pleaded not to be named.
Learning with tears
Most times, the pupils have to shut their windows to avoid inhaling the offensive odour from some of the abandoned classrooms littered with human faeces. Besides, the hoodlums, it was gathered, usually barge into the classrooms while lessons were on to remove some of the items they had hidden there, while the panicky pupils and their teachers look helpless. The water and toilet facility, as well as the school’s library, have also been vandalised.
A female teacher, who did not want her name in print for fear of retribution, said: ”The school is everything a good school should not be. The hoodlums have been using the school as home for many years now. They destroyed many things here until former Governor Raji Fashola built new classrooms and provided water and new furniture in 2009.
The source added: “The hoodlums usually loiter around the premises waiting for us to depart after school hours. And because we are now using hard padlocks to shut the toilets, they would defecate, wrap their faeces in nylons and drop them inside the desks. In the morning, the unsuspecting pupils would dip their hands in the faeces kept in their desks.
“Whenever they could not find tissue paper to clean up after defecating, they would tear the foam of the cushion chairs for that purpose. The hoodlums enter the premises of the school through the broken fence and sometimes jump in through the wall separating the school from a market.”
Pupils in one of the classrooms with the vandalised ceiling in Community Primary School, Ewu Tuntun
Some pupils, who shared their pathetic story with our correspondent, confirmed that hoodlums constitute nuisance to the school.
A primary four pupil, who identified himself simply as Olumide, said: “Some people come to defecate in our classrooms and drop faeces there every day. They hide faeces in our desks and under the chairs. We usually pack the rubbish every morning before starting our lesson, but they won’t cease from coming to do their rubbish here.”
One of the class teachers, who spoke in confidence, confirmed that the hoodlums usually wrap the faeces inside polythene bags and drop them on the floor or inside the desks.
He said: “They wrap the faeces and drop them inside the desks and at times excrete on the floor of the classrooms. The pupils are made to clear the faeces before the commencement of lesson every day.
“They’ll break into some of the offices and vandalise books and furniture. They also hide marijuana in the ceilings of the classrooms. The police have not been able to apprehend the hoodlums because wrong persons are usually arrested whenever the police raid this area.”
Our correspondent observed that some of the vandalised classrooms have been abandoned, while others with windows cannot be shut because they have been broken by the vagabonds.
Another source, who asked not to be named, said: “To stave off further intrusion, some of the doors to the classrooms were fortified with iron and burglar proofs, but the hoodlums would still destroy the windows through which they gain access to the classrooms. They would bathe, wash their clothes and spread them on the furniture within and outside the buildings. Only recently, they (hoodlums) broke into the office of the head teacher and looted it.”
Bad influence
The school’s buildings provide a shade for the hoodlums to sell illicit items such as marijuana and other stimulants. It was learnt that marijuana is usually hidden in the ceilings of the classrooms. It was learnt that the hoodlums and their customers usually converged on the school premises at 4 pm to transact business (sale of hard drugs) and would revel in it till late in the night.
A female teacher, who did not want her name in print, confided in our correspondent that the hoodlums were able to influence one of the pupils a few years ago by asking the innocent boy to watch over marijuana and weapons hidden in the ceilings of his classroom. It was learnt that the boy in question has since taken to hard drugs and now works as bus conductor.
She said: “There was a primary four pupil whose parents live in the neighbourhood. The boy was the one serving as courier for the hoodlums by helping them to hide and bring out hard drugs hidden in the classrooms.
“The boy was caught and reported to his parents, who tried in vain to rein their son. At a point, the boy’s mother told us that she was helpless as her son had become recalcitrant.
“I taught the boy when he was in primary four. But it is sad that today he smokes marijuana and works as a bus conductor in Oshodi (Lagos). I have sighted him several times at the Oshodi Motor Park, and I was not happy on each occasion.”
The school’s head teacher, Mrs. Vivour Ayobola, declined comment when our correspondent approached her. She said she had no authority to talk to journalists as a civil servant.
She said: “As a civil servant, I am not permitted by civil service rule to speak on a matter like this.”
Ayobola and some non-teaching members of the school’s staff prevented our correspondent from taking photographs of the vandalised buildings. A few of the photographs used here had been taken before the head teacher was approached for comment.
An official of the Oshodi/Isolo Local Education Authority, who craved anonymity, said the presence of the hoodlums poses a great danger to the pupils and teachers in the school. He said he had personally carried out a raid on the school a few years ago during which he seized heaps of marijuana from the hoodlums.
The official added: “There is need to remove the hoodlums from the school because their continued siege to the school portends danger for pupils and teachers.
“The hoodlums have laid siege to the school for more than 10 years now. I once routed the hoodlums from the school during an afternoon raid a few years ago and seized several trays of marijuana from them. The marijuana confiscated was handed over to a nearby police division, but the hoodlums returned to terrify pupils and teachers.”
A resident, Mrs. Omolayo Adejumo, said fears that the pupils could be molested or influenced by hoodlums had made many parents in the area not to enroll their children in the school. She said: “Let me be honest with you, many of the parents in the neighbourhood don’t like enrolling their children in the school because the hoodlums are usually seen loitering around the premises even during school hours.
“The hoodlums smoke marijuana and take alcohol in the school premises and teachers cannot challenge them for fear of being beaten up. In that kind of situation, do you think it is advisable to enroll one’s children there? The environment is not just conducive for learning.”
The ugly spectacles at Ago Owu Primary School also applies at Mafoluku school complex, also in Oshodi/Isolo Local Government Area, where learning and teaching have become nightmares for pupils and teachers. The school complex, which accommodates Community Primary School, Ewu Tuntun; State Primary School, Ewu Tuntun and Mafoluku Primary School bleeds from the activities of hoodlums who have made the schools a haven.
A visitor to the school is confronted by dilapidated buildings, broken fence and refuse that litter the premises.
At the point of entry from Bode Onifade Street, where the schools are located, stands a dilapidated classroom block. The block, which accommodates primary one and two pupils of Mafoluku Primary School, is a sorry sight unfit for learning. The roofs are shattered and the ceilings are broken. The windows can no longer be closed, having been allegedly destroyed by hoodlums.
It was learnt that the roofs were broken in an attempt by the hoodlums to gain access after the doors to the classrooms were locked. At the moment, gaping holes are everywhere in the classrooms.
On the left fringe of the complex, a decrepit classroom block belonging to Community Primary School, stares a visitor in the face. The building was said to have been abandoned after it was also vandalised by the hoodlums.
A new building constructed by the school- based management committee of Oshodi/Isolo Local Government is far from giving succour to the distraught pupils. The new building sited at the back of the vandalised classrooms is without ceiling to insulate the classrooms from the heat produced by scorching sun. The male pupils usually pull off their shirts when the heat descends, while the female ones run outside in search of air.
“The building was provided by the school-based management committee after the other classroom block was vandalised. The committee decided to build a new classroom block to alleviate the suffering of teachers and students, but there is no ceiling in the classrooms, hence, pupils run outside to escape heat whenever the sun is at its peak.” said a teacher in the school who declined identity.
Like their counterparts in Ago Owu Primary School, the vagabonds also defecate and drop faeces inside the pupils’ lockers in the three schools.
A number of the classrooms are left with gaping holes in their roofs and ceilings after they were allegedly destroyed by hoodlums.
As a result, the floors of the classrooms are usually water-logged whenever it rains while pupils scamper for safety in the corners of their classrooms. The floors of the affected classrooms have been destroyed without any hope of repair in sight.
The toilets and water facilities in the schools are not spared. The hoodlums have broken the sewage pipes connected to the toilet, causing faeces to spill from the bust pipes at the back of the toilet.
A classroom block at State Primary School is also vandalised by hoodlums. The roof of the block overlooking a staff room has been destroyed, exposing the pupils to environmental hazards.
Before the Yuletide break in December last year, the hoodlums were said to have destroyed a borehole machine and pipes that carried water to a surface tank that serves the three schools. It was gathered that the borehole was fixed a few days ago by the head teachers of the three schools.
A source within the schools told our correspondent that “the hoodlums have been recalcitrant to the extent that they are not deterred by constant raids carried out by the police.”
In yet another instance of madness, one of the hoodlums was said to have robbed a female teacher during school hours. It was gathered that the teacher was teaching in front of the class when a hoodlum removed the bag she placed on a seat and ran away. A non-teaching member of staff, who craved anonymity, recalled the incident, saying: “It was like a scene from the movies about six months ago when a female teacher was dispossessed of her bag containing money and other valuables. The teacher moved to the entrance of the class to attend to a pupil when a young man barged into the classroom through the window and stole the bag.
“All the efforts made to apprehend him were in vain. Some of the mechanics nearby, however, succeeded in apprehending the hoodlum a few days later but the money and phones kept in the bag had been removed.”
Our correspondent observed that several parts of the school’s fence had collapsed. Sources within the school said the collapsed walls were caused by the hoodlums who wanted to have easy access into the premises.
A woman, who identified herself as the head teacher of one of the schools, accosted our correspondent and warned him to leave the premises, saying: “Journalists are not permitted to take photographs or report anything about the school.” The woman and two members of the non-teaching staff of the school led our correspondent out of the school complex and warned him never to return.
Witnessing a convergence
The day was just winding up when our correspondent arrived at Market Lane, Shogunle penultimate Tuesday to witness the convergence of hoodlums on Ago Owu Primary School. To stave off suspicion, he made friends with two male workers of a block making company in front of the school. One of the workers introduced our correspondent as his ‘very good friend’ to a stoutly built owner of a nearby mechanic workshop who offered him a stool to sit under the shed that served as the workshop.
By 4.30 pm, the hoodlums started arriving in trickles. One of them called ‘Ciro’, led two others into the school premises through a large hole on the school fence and headed straight to an abandoned toilet near the fence. Ciro, a stocky youth of average height who wore a yellow short sleeved shirt on a pair of blue jeans, dropped a black nylon bag inside the toilet and changed into a brown T-shirt. About 20 minutes later, he emerged from the decrepit building with a small brown bag hanging across his body.
“Wa gb’oja sinu tray (spread the marijuana in a tray),” Ciro yelled at one of his aides in a guttural voice before leading them into one of the two classroom blocks where they spent about 40 minutes. At exactly 5.35 pm, eight other hoodlums entered and exchanged banter with Ciro and his aides before settling down for a marijuana smoking and drinking spree right at the centre of the compound.
Others soon joined and a cacophony erupted from the excited hoodlums. Some of the names they bear include ‘Shakur’; Tiri’; Agaba; Gbade; Timo and Elele.
Desks and tables removed from the classrooms were brought into the open space with marijuana and herbal drinks placed on them as money changed hands between Ciro’s aides and their customers.
As the smoking and boozing session continued, some other hoodlums dashed in and out of the compound, while others went into the classrooms for unknown reasons. A few others stood near the locked school gate smoking marijuana and consuming sachets of local herbal gin.
By 7.15 pm when our correspondent left the place, more and more hoodlums were still trooping into the school.
On Wednesday January 20, 20916, our correspondent visited Mafoluku Primary School, State Primary School, Ewu Tuntun and Community Primary School, Ewu Tuntun , which all share the same compound on Bode Onifade Street, Mafoluku, Oshodi. By the time he arrived the school at 5.30 pm, a horde of hoodlums had gathered there, smoking marijuana and consuming liquor. They were seen jumping from one classroom to another with different brands of herbal gins in their hands.
The Nation’s correspondent, who pretended that he needed some marijuana, was introduced by a youth in the area to another tall, light-complexioned youth called ‘Onile’, who brought out wraps of marijuana from a black nylon bag for a fee.
Iso, Tebati, Ogbos and Iskilu are some of the names the hoodlums addressed themselves with.
The hoodlums, who included young girls, were about 40 in number, and they moved from one end of the expansive school complex to another. A fight later ensued between two of the hoodlums over an undisclosed amount of money collected from a local musician during a street party held in the area a few days earlier. The resultant physical combat was later settled when ‘Onile’ asked the warring parties to leave the premises or risk being embarrassed.
Onile said: “E maa ba business je funmi o. Tee ba le maintain, e kuro nibi or else maa jeju yin (don’t spoil my business for me. Move out of this place, if you cannot behave yourselves or I embarrass you).”
As at 8.15 pm when our correspondent left the area, misguided youths were still trooping in and out of the school complex, fouling the air with smoke from marijuana.
A resident, Mrs Peace Ibezim, said the hoodlums were in the habit of causing panic in the community as they often engage in free for all.
She said: “We live in fear in this community as a result of the presence of hoodlums. They would converge on the school complex in hundreds to smoke marijuana, drink alcohol and even rape girls.
“Most times they engage in free for all and take their fights to the streets, causing panicky residents to scamper into safety. They use some of the dangerous weapons which they keep inside the school complex whenever they confront one another.”
Experts have urged the state government to take immediate action towards curbing the conversion of school premises into dens of hoodlums with the attendant destruction of educational facilities and buildings.
A retired school principal, Mr Edwin Kolapo, urged the authorities to engage community leaders in a bid to keep the hoodlums at bay. Kolapo said: “There is no way hoodlums who have occupied a school complex for a very long time can easily be dislodged. My advice to the Local Government Education Authority and the state Ministry of Education is to include community leaders in their plan.
“Most of these boys are known to landlords in the community and they can easily be tracked down and prevented from escaping before the arrival of security agents, with the assistance of the community leaders.”
A community leader in Mafoluku area of Oshodi, Elder James Adedoyin, said there was need for the state government to provide adequate security for schools.
Describing the development as unfortunate during a telephone conversation, the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Education, Mrs Olabisi Ariyo, said government was already addressing the matter.
“The problem with education development in the state is that people are not helping government at all. Otherwise, I don’t see any reason why hoodlums should jump into public schools. In some schools, they broke down the fence and it is sad that people are destroying facilities put in place with tax payers’ money. That is why we have decided to stop the use of public schools to host social functions or parties to prevent hoodlums from gaining access.”
She said the state government would engage security agencies to assist in protecting public schools from vandals.
“We are also embarking on massive fencing of our schools and discussing with relevant security agencies to have the schools secured. Only recently, we carried out a raid on some schools in some parts of Lagos with the help of the police and we succeeded in chasing out hoodlums out of the affected schools. At the moment, men of the Neighbourhood Watch are being deployed to ensure protection of schools and facilities.”
Efforts made by our correspondent to reach the spokesman of the Lagos State Police Command, Mrs. Dolapo Badmos, on her mobile phone yielded no result. She also had not responded to a text message forwarded to her mobile phone at press time.
