₦airaland Forum

Bekwarra:
In the last few days, the media has been awash with news of series of militants attacks on some communities in Ikorodu Lagos. What I notice is that, information has been scanty and many people have been making false claims as to the where, when and how of the attacks. Many of the comments on social media have taken ethnic and political colouration with many miscues. This is just an attempt to set the records straight. PS: I'm neither a militant nor a vandal, neither do I live in any of the communities I'll mention, but I've been there on several occasions because I have someone who lives close by and I've gone inside the creeks out of curiosity to see things for my self. The few times I went to the creeks, to say I was so shocked was an understatement. Although you can't just walk in their without an insider, don't mind me I was a campus journalist and I'm still doing some little journalistic work. This is just an attempt to tell the story as it is and disabuse our minds from rumours and half-truths. The communities largely involved are Ishawo, Igbo Olomu, Elepete, Oke Muti and Magbon with Ishawo being the deadliest. It's been a while that I wanted to write about the menace of militants and vandals in that axis but my tight schedule wouldn't allow me. My initial write up was going to be based on the folly of withdrawing the pipeline surveillance contract from the OPC without thinking it through. Even if you had any grouse with the contract, you should just have reviewed and restructured it instead of cancelling it outrightly. I can say here unequivocally that the OPC did a better job than the Nigerian Army are doing there now. The boys had it tougher during that time but currently the only thing that happens is those soldiers going there every 3 days to collect money and fill their own jerry cans and zoom off. In fact in some places like Magbon, it is the soldiers that handle the pumps by themselves filling tankers and jerry cans. Those guys are stinkingly rich now.

The major business in those communities are pipeline vandalism and sale of petrol. It's a big time business that has made many to become millionaires overnight and has big as it is overthere, government can never claim ignorance. As can be noticed from some people's comments especially here on nairaland, some persons have been making some spurious allegations; from the bizarre, to the utterly ridiculous. While some say the militants are Niger Delta Avengers, some say they are fulani herdsmen and some others say they are Yorubas trying to give Biafra a bad name. Just imagine o gosh! Now let's take a look 1. These things(vandalism and oil theft) have been having in these communities for a while now with the only hiccups being the intervention of the OPC then but since the exit of the OPC boys, it has blossomed into a big time business.

Many people are involved, male and female, old and young, policemen and soldiers. If you been close to the creeks before, you will be annoyed with the brazen display of defiance. Whenever their is "pressure" which is used to referred to when fuel has started flowing through the pipes to warrant pumping, you'll see them moving to the creeks in droves. Lots of women are involved in it and a visit to the creeks will make you think you are at some sort of market. They even sell beer, hot drinks and food at the river bank. You'll see cars and buses moving in at night with lots of kegs to make purchases. The kegs are 50-litre kegs and they go for between 2500 when fuel is not scarce to around 4500 when there is scarcity.

At times during rainy season when there's much pressure, price drops to 1500 or 2000. 2. All the residents know what's going on. While some are involved, others simply cannot talk due to the fear for their lives and coupled with the fact that law enforcement agents are culpable. Many residents have been threatened and harassed so many times...........

:

When majority turns to crime.

walexy30:
:

@walexy30 nailed the truth. Every illegal bunkering activities around that axis especially Isawo is not news again. Almost every residents including Isawo policemen and soldiers have there shares of the business. Sometimes those bunkers gat the guts to attack police formation whenever there is disagreement between them. Government knew who to hold responsible for the menaces which are the law enforcement agencies

The opc who use to guide the ikorodu creecks have been dissolved by buhari.nd to make it worst we yoruba's tag them thigs nd diffrent bad name just cause of apc.now they have left yoruba nation alone nd ijaw boys are attackin ikorodu.we because of support of a political party disown them nd put our land at risk

*Yawns*...Next!

Is that all?....next!!!!!!!

I don't what to think.