Irate truck drivers set truck park ablaze over colleague’s death

Hundreds of truck drivers yesterday set the entrance to the Lilypond trailer transit park at Ijora, Lagos, ablaze over the alleged killing of their member by a policeman attached to the Lagos State Lagos Task Force on Environmental Sanitation. 

The drivers also destroyed two patrol vans belonging to the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and other vehicles parked around the area. 

Our correspondent gathered that the task force men had arrived the area yesterday morning to dislodge traders and pull down some shanties under the Ijora bridge. 

But a fracas broke out between the state government officials and some hoodlums

A witness said the task force officials had two days ago gone to Lilypond/Ijora under-bridge to clear shanties and street traders from the area, a task that was resisted by the hoodlums who pelted the officials with pure water sachets and stones

It was learnt that the same task force officials came back yesterday with a reinforcement team.

 “When the Lagos State Task Force first came, they began arresting those women selling food and drinks under the bridge, but the boys there prevented them. 

The officials used tear gas and went away with about two or three women. 

“I am surprised that the same officials came back today (yesterday) with reinforcement, which led to a clash between them and the area boys,” the witness said.

 The witness alleged that a truck driver who was running for his life fell and was stabbed to death by the hoodlums. 

Condemning the attack, the General Manager (Security) of NPA, Mr Olumide Omotoso, said the facility had been shut down temporarily. 

Omotoso said, “There was crisis in one of our facilities, the Lilypond Transit Truck Park. The police waded in and we do not want to jeopardize investigation. We have restored normalcy”.