Journalist Rufai Oseni may be penalised for illegally using the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) lane in Lagos, a government official has said.
Mr Oseni clashed with the police on Monday for using the lane with his private vehicle.
Oseni alleged that a police officer pointed a gun at him while trying to enforce the infraction.
He said he offered to pay for the infraction but “the police was hell-bent on forcefully collecting my keys and pointing a gun at me.”
“A Nigerian police officer pointed a gun at me and forcefully took my keys and drove my car off, because he wanted to enforce a traffic infraction,” the Arise TV anchor tweeted.
In a short note on Twitter, Gboyega Akosile, chief press secretary to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, described the journalist as a lawbreaker, saying Oseni had already admitted his offence to the police.
He said Rufai would face the necessary penalty for flouting BRT rules.
“Thank you Rufai, while the @PoliceNG deal with the police officer in their own way, we’d ensure that necessary action is taken against you for driving on BRT lane as you’ve admitted to the police. You’re a lawbreaker and you should face the necessary penalties,” Mr Akosile said.
However, Rufai replied Akosile, saying he did not deliberately break the law. He said he would not have used the BRT lane if other drivers had not used it.
“I am not a lawbreaker. I saw cars pass through the Supposed BRT lane and they were not stopped. All of a sudden I was stopped and told to use the bus lane. If I don’t see other cars I will not go through, plus I want to be conversant with the road. In fact, after I was stopped three cars also,” he tweeted.
In reaction to Oseni’s tweet, Lagos police spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, said the officer that pointed a gun at him would be sanctioned if Oseni’s claim was found to be true.
