** One feared killed, 18 arrested, detained ** Nollywood actress, Kate Henshaw-Nuttal assaulted It was another day of protest yesterday as residents of the Lekki, Ajah and Epe axis of Lagos State came out en-masse to vent their displeasure over plans by the state government to begin collection of tolls on the newly constructed Lekki- Epe Expressway today.
But yesterdayÕs protest turned violent when Policemen tried to disperse the protesters. The residents who had gathered at about 9:00 am claimed that if the toll regime is allowed, an average resident would be paying about N250,000 per annum on a car, a development they claimed would impoverish them. Gov. Babatunde Fashola, had on Nov. 14, while presenting the 2012 Appropriation Bill to the State House of Assembly, expressed support for the collection of tolls by the Lekki Concession Company (LCC).
He said the state had, so far, spent N4 billion as compensation to the LCC for suspending toll collections on the road. The residents, in their hundreds, walked from Lekki Peninsula Phase 1 round about to toll plaza, carrying placards and chanting solidarity songs. Some of the placards read Where is the real Governor of Lagos State?ÕÕ ``Why not toll on Bourdillon Road,ÕÕ ``No to LCC/ High TechÕÕ and ``No to toll on Lekki axis.ÕÕ Others are ``No payment for unfinished road,ÕÕ ``Three tolls in one Local Government? Madness,ÕÕ and ``We will not pay tolls to live or return to our homes.ÕÕ The protesters were trailed by members of the Nigeria Police Force who later shot teargas to disperse them because of the heavy traffic they had caused around the toll plaza. In the stampede that ensued, several people were injured, while one middleaged man was feared dead. The cause of death was however not clear. A version said he collapsed after a gunshot was heard.
But another version claimed that the yet-to-beidentified protester died of exhaustion while some said he collapsed after being chocked by the tear gas canister fired into the crowd of protesters . Journalists were also not spared by the thugs and policemen at the scene as they were equally attacked. One of the photojournalists works as a staff of the Nigerian Compass newspapers. He along with Sunday Alamba, who works with Associated Press (AP) were assaulted, while their cameras, bags and other paraphernalia were seized. Nollywood actress Kate Henshaw-Nuttal was also one of those assaulted. Some residents were not so lucky as over 40 of them were allegedly arrested.
Lagos State Police Spokesman, Samuel Jinadu, DSP, however said only 18 residents were arrested and detained at the State Criminal Investigation department (SCID), Panti, Yaba, Lagos, while no death was recorded. Chairman of the Lekki Peninsula Phase 1 ResidentsÕ Association, Mr Wole Akala, who led the protest, told newsmen that government should not start the collection of tolls until a viable alternative route was created. ``It is totally premature for the government to start collecting tolls as the alternative route it created is in a private estate. ``Oniru is a private estate and people living there may close the road at any time to celebrate one thing or the other. It will expose us to the decisions of private individuals,ÕÕ he said.
Akala said the alternative route could not take two cars at a time, noting that there would be chaos if the multitude of people decided to take that route. ``Government should suspend the collection of tolls and construct the road properly. It cannot use peoplesÕ money to build its road. ``It is an unpopular decision that should be reversed. Government is for the people and the people are saying that they do not have that kind of money to pay for three toll plazas,ÕÕ he said. Mr. James Imadoye, Chairman of Brown Estate, said Oniru was not the route agreed upon in the contract, adding that the alternative road should be a coastal road. ``What we are saying is that Lagos State has a contract and a master plan for Lekki axis; they have deviated from this master plan. ``Both the contract and the master plan are subject to the Laws of Lagos State and the government should respect its own Law.
``We are also aggrieved that this is the only road they are putting toll plaza on. The government has renovated roads in Ikoyi, Orile and Surulere, why are there no toll plazas on those roads?.ÕÕ Dr Ronke Agoro, a resident, said the government had not justified why it should collect tolls on the road. He said it only added a lane to the two lanes built by the former governor of Lagos State, Lateef Jakande. ``What have they done on the road that they are asking us to pay? The government wants us to pay for everything; meanwhile the minimum wage is just N18, 000.
Are they asking us to go and steal? Meanwhile the state government on Saturday restated its commitment to maintenance of law and order in the state. Speaking against the backdrop of the protest march by a group said to be opposed to the commencement of tolling at the Lekki - Epe Expressway, the State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Aderemi Ibirogba said while it is the fundamental right of the citizens to protest, there should never be a recourse to violence. While expressing regrets that some journalists and media organisations were affected by the fracas which reportedly broke out at the scene of the protest, the Commissioner noted that reports reaching the State Government indicated that the law enforcement agents had to step in to prevent a breakdown of law and order when alleged thugs arrived the scene and fighting broke out.
According to the Commissioner, the Police stepped in to restore law and order and have made some arrests including a top Peoples Democratic Party candidate who contested and lost during the last general elections, a development which showed that the protest itself was politically motivated. Mr. Ibirogba cautioned against the politicization of every issue including developmental issues with clear implications for the welfare of the people and the image of the country as a whole. He said broad based consultations had been carried out and several conditions set by the people in the Lekki axis including the provision of alternative routes and provision of high capacity buses had been met before an earlier suspension on tolling was lifted. The State Government, Mr Ibirogba said, would probe deep into the issue and prosecute masterminds of the reported violence during the protest.
Credit: National Mirror
18/12/2011
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