Member representing Ikorodu Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives and Chairman, House committee on Diaspora Affairs Hon Abike Dabiri Erewa has called on the Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Usman Jibrin, to intervene in the acute traffic gridlock in Majidun area of Ikorodu following the early morning arrest of oil pipeline vandals by men of the Nigerian Navy in Majidun.
Dabiri-Erewa who made the call in a statement today, argued that though the security operatives should be commended for the operation but they should be sensitive to the plight of other members of the community.
The statement read, ‘While commending the Nigerian Navy for arresting the vandals, she stressed that, this should however not inconvenience residents and commuters who have had to spend several hours on the road in a devastating gridlock with no hope of the situation getting better”.
The lawmaker also called on the Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Usman Jibrin to also look into the alleged use of force on road users by men of the Nigerian Navy, who stop and force motorists to carry the jerry cans seized from the vandals into Nigerian Naval trucks.
Complete News gathered that the, intervention of the lawamker came as residents endured a fifth day of blockade as men of the Nigerian Navy led an operation code-named “AWATSE”, which literally means SCATTER, aimed at dislodging the vandals.
Hundreds of residents and visitors spent several hours in traffic during the Eid-el Kabir holiday because of the gridlock caused by the military operation in Majidun, which incidentally is the only direct entry point from other parts of Lagos.
It got worse on Wednesday as workers resumed after the Sallah celebration and students returned to school following an Ebola enforced extended holiday.
Chaotic traffic was witnessed as early as 4:30am in the Ogolonto/Majidun axis, causing stranded motorists and passengers to condemn the presence of the military in the area.
Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) officials could not easily control the pandemonium made worse by drivers frantic to get out of the area.
Like many others, the lawmaker had hoped the exercise would end on Tuesday; the day the Nigerian Navy said it impounded over 2,000 gallons of petroleum products from the vandals.
It would be recalled that the Flag Officer Commanding Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Ilesanmi Alade, told newsmen that the operation, which took his men sleepless nights, was carried out following a tip-off from the public.
