₦airaland Forum

naptu2:
The Gates Issue

I found all my old posts and threads about this issue except one. The missing post is the one that deals with the history of the problem. Therefore I have changed my mind and I will now write a summary of the problem.


1) I read about this issue for the first time in the late 1980s or early 1990s. There were security challenges in some parts of Lagos and residents of some streets on the mainland erected gates at the beginning and end of their streets and hired security guards to man the gates.

2) I read about the issue because it affected journalists and entertainers. These two groups of people often went home at odd hours and anything that affected them often became public knowledge. Many journalists wrote columns about how they left their offices late at night or early in the morning, but could not get home because the gates on their streets were closed and the security guards refused to let them through. Some had to wait at the gate till daybreak, some wrote about the altercations they had with the security guards and some wrote that some security guards recognised them and knew that they lived on the street, but they wanted bribes.

I think it was sometime in the 2000s that the story broke about a musician that was involved in a fight with the security guards on his street because they refused to let him in.

3) Dear diary, you might remember that I told you about a very violent armed robbery that I witnessed on the mainland. I could track the movement of the robbers (I knew which street they were on) because they were shooting non-stop for 3 hours.

The police showed up after almost 3 hours. I saw their truck going down a street (they still had those Operation Sweep era sirens, which were not very loud. The truck passed close to me, but I could barely hear the siren). I saw the truck go back a few minutes later and I easily figured why. The gate at the end of that street was closed. The police had to go the long way round (and that's when the gun battle began).

4) In the 2000s some residents on the Island also erected gates on their streets.

5) Governor Babatunde Fashola decided to tackle the problem, so he had a meeting with representatives of residents associations from across the state.

The governor stated that many street gates were closed all day and night and this created massive traffic jams on major streets that had no gates. He said that the inner roads (that had been gated) were supposed to serve as alternatives to the major roads and to relieve the major roads of traffic during rush hour, but this was not possible because the inner roads had been blocked by street gates.

He further said that the emergency services often found it difficult to get to the scene of emergencies because of these street gates.

The residents' associations said that they had erected street gates in order to protect themselves from violent robbers.

A compromise was eventually reached. It was agreed that the street gates would be open from 5am till midnight and then shut from midnight till 5am. It was also agreed that the residents would hire security guards to man the gates, so that they could open them if the emergency services needed to gain access to the street. The government then created a task force that was charged with monitoring the situation and dismantling gates that were shut during daytime.

6) Sometime between 2010 and 2012, the Lekki Estate Residents Association (LERA) decided that the estate was too big for LERA to effectively manage on its own. It decided to encourage residents to create mini residents associations within their streets or zones.

7) Sometime around 2015/2016, a few of these mini residents associations erected street gates in their zones. They were very few.

8 ) The Covid 19 lock down took place in 2020 and there were a lot of reports of attacks on Lekki residents. Some joggers were attacked on the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge. Pedestrians were also attacked on Admiralty Way and in other parts of Phase 1.


9) In October 2020 there was a very violent riot in Lekki Phase 1. A lot of properties on Admiralty Way, Fola Osibo Street, Adewunmi Adebimpe Drive, Ogungbe Crescent, etc were destroyed. Gangs of youths patrolled the estate and destroyed everything in sight. Some people noticed that the inner roads that had street gates did not experience the destruction and terror.

10) In the aftermath of the End SARS riots, residents of most of the streets that did not have street gates erected gates on their streets, while those that already had gates further fortified them. Some streets hired armed guards to assist the private security guards that manned the gates. You might remember that I told you that my shortcut to the petrol station had been blocked by a street gate and I had to drive the long way round when I wanted to buy petrol.

11) In 2021 Governor Sanwo-Olu had a meeting with residents associations and it was decided that street gates should be open from 6am to 10pm and that they could be closed from 10pm till 6am. They must be manned by security guards when they are closed.

12) Soon afterward an enforcement team came to Lekki and removed street gates that were shut during the day. I created a thread about it. https://www.nairaland.com/6544648/lagos-state-government-removes-unapproved

13) However, there were more incidents after this enforcement exercise. End SARS protesters continued to stage protests in the Lekki area (e.g. on October 1st, on October 20th, etc) and they have often entered the estate when either the police refused to allow them block the expressway or when they were chased away. Therefore, even more streets erected street gates. Streets that I never imagined could have street gates, like Olateju Crescent, (aka Waterside) now have street gates. You need to have the access code in order to enter most of those streets.

14) I got this message around 2 weeks ago.

Good morning everyone.

Just to share briefly the incident that occurred at my residence during the early hours of yesterday.

At approximately 5:10AM, a white Corolla vehicle with four unknown men pulled up at the main gate of my residence on Engineer George Enenmoh crescent.

According to my security guard, the vehicle hooted a few times to get his attention and a man from the vehicle approached the gate and requested to drop off a package for Oga of the house.

Unfortunately, my security guard was careless at that point as he totally assumed it could be a valid delivery service and instead of him reaching out to me for confirmation, he opened the pedestrian gate but to his surprise, he met 3 men who forced there way in by overpowering him.

One of the men had a rifle and these men assaulted my security guard, injured him badly and threatened to shoot him if he made any noise or caused any disruptions.

Whilst the robber with the rifle subdued the security guard, one of the robbers (who obliviously is a very well experienced mechanic) broke into my Toyota Prado by using a chemical to weaken one of the car windows and within about 5-7 mins was able to remove the brain-box, glove compartment and all four window controllers.

Note that the whole operation took about 12 minutes before the robbers left my compound.

4 robbers made up of 1 mechanic who carried out the car vandalization and extraction of valuable parts.
1 driver who manned the car all through keeping the engine running.
1 mask man with a rifle who subdued the security guard.
1 in charge of surveillance all through the operation.

Key points to note for everyone
1. The case of car burglary is now on the increase according to various feedback from the police.
2. The robbers now operate with arms (at least one rifle)
3. They carry out their surveillance via different means over time to identify their targets. There are some vehicle brands & models they target due to high demand of their parts.
4. They now also operate at unusual hours especially between (5:00AM till about 7:00AM) this is a new strategy. I was shown a similar case to mine at the police station yesterday where the incident started at 6:33AM and occurred in Lekki 1 just last week.
5. There is a need for everyone to be more security conscious. Educate your workers on security awareness.
6. There is need to revisit the modus operandi of the estate security to be more effective ( noting that they did not detect the robbers when they entered and left the loop).
7. The police have advised that at least two mobile police men be assigned to support the estate security between 7PM to 7AM every day. Recall the security guards are not armed and we now know that the robbers we want them to prevent are armed.

God bless & keep everyone

This has made some people advocate for more street gates and armed guards at the gate.

15) However, people who don't live in Lekki Phase 1 are sick and tired of the street gates as you can see from the screen shots below (the screenshots continue in the next post).

GUIDELINES ON GATED STREETS/BARRIERS

The Ministry of Transportation has observed a surge in the installation of unauthorised gates, particularly in the Lekki axis. Many of these gates were erected without the necessary approvals from the Ministry, while some approved gates are being mismanaged as residents fail to adhere to the established guidelines for gated streets in Lagos State.

This non-compliance poses significant challenges to traffic flow, emergency response access, and overall public safety. As such, the Ministry is taking a firm stance to address this issue and wishes to reiterate the following in line with the Lagos State Government’s policy and regulations:

i. All gates and barriers installed without prior authorisation from the Lagos State Government are illegal and will be removed.

ii. Any unauthorised gate or barrier must be dismantled within seven (7) days of this announcement. Failure to comply will result in enforcement actions, including removal and penalties, in line with existing regulations.

For gates and barriers with prior approval, compliance with the following guidelines is mandatory:

i. Gates or barriers on public roads or streets must remain fully open for public use between 5:00 AM and 10:00 PM daily, to ensure interconnectivity and the free flow of traffic across the State.

ii. All approved gates or barriers must be manned by security personnel engaged by the Community Development Associations (CDAs). However, between 10:00 PM and 5:00 AM, these gates or barriers may remain closed but must be opened promptly in the event of an emergency to allow free access and exit for first responders.

The Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, Mr. Oluwaseun Osiyemi urges all residents and CDAs to strictly comply with these guidelines to foster a safe, efficient, and connected transportation network across the State. Failure to adhere to these guidelines will incur punitive measures against non-compliant CDAs, including fines and further enforcement actions from the State Government.

All residents in gated streets or areas with barriers are encouraged to ensure compliance with these regulations to maintain a safe and accessible transportation network across the State.

Mr. Oluwaseun Osiyemi,

Honourable Commissioner for Transportation

#AGreaterLagosRising
#LASG

ibawon:
Naptu2 thanks so much for this very detailed and informative thread. As an indigene of that area, it's refreshing to witness this, I remembered some of my friends who tapped into this earlier when I told them. God bless you!

mfm04622:
What is the plan for Dangote Port?

1. Would it be handed over to Fg?
2. Closed down?
3. Operated by Dangote for the use of Dangote alone?
4. Operated by Dangote and open to all users?

Thank you.

naptu2:
I wanted to give a Nigerian example of a self propelled barge.


The Lekki Expressway was being reconstructed in the 2000s and this work led to enormous traffic jams. Tarzan developed a solution to the problem. It used a self propelled barge as a roll on-roll off car ferry.

From 2007 till 2011 when the reconstruction work was completed, people could have their vehicles ferried from Lekki Phase 1 or Sandfill to Queens Drive in Ikoyi.

Why are self propelled barges now significant? You'll soon find out.

Construction of the 6-lane rigid pavement on Eleko Epe T junction

Project Summary

This is the ONGOING Massive Construction of the 6-lane rigid pavement on Eleko Epe T junction by Messers Craneburg Construction.
Governor of Lagos State, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu flagged off the construction on 1st November 2020.

Project Details:

- The Total Length of the road from Eleko Junction to Epe T junction is 18.75km.
- CONTRACTOR: Craneburg Construction
- Provision of reinforced concrete drains, Culverts and Median Barrier
- Installation of Traffic Lights
- Landscaping of Road Verges
- Preservation of rail line corridor with 50m RoW
- Installation of Street Lights
- Dedicated Truck Lane and Railway Line (for future).

- Road to serve as template for construction of road leading towards the Dangote Refinery, Lekki Ports and the Lagos Free Zones, so that we don’t have a future problem with the ports like Apapa.

Mr Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu promised this project, flagged it off and delivering quality infrastructure to the Lagos East axis of the State.