Member representing the Ikorodu Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has promised to meet the Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Usman Jibrin, over the horrific traffic gridlock caused by the military swoop on pipeline vandals in the Majidun area of the town.
Her intervention is coming 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.
Reacting to the situation, Dabiri-Erewa said in a Twitter message that it was “laudable to go after them (vandals) but the road should not be blocked.”
She then added, “Working on meeting the CNS this week on this.”
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.
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.
