The two Military officers, who were
accosted on the BRT lane at the Outer Marina in Central Lagos, are Colonel K. I
Yusuf who drove in an Army Green Peugeot 406 with registration Number BO1 – 150
NA and Staff Sergeant Adeomi A.J. who drove in a black Toyota Camry.
Fashola who was visibly raged over the incident, left his convoy, heading straight towards the two officers, expressing dismay that those who should show the highest form of discipline and professionalism were the ones violating the BRT regulation.
Realizing that the game was up,
Colonel Yusuf came down from his car, saluted severally and kept muttering “I
am sorry, very, very sorry” with the Governor enquiring why, as a senior
military officer, Yusuf would choose to break the law instead of preserving it.
The arrest drew the attention of
commuters and other passers-by who commended the Governor for showing good
leadership and expressed joy that the senior military officer got caught in the
act at last.
Fielding questions from newsmen after
the incident, Governor Fashola described as very unfortunate the fact that
those who ought to stand behind in defense of the democratic values of the
nation are the ones violating the law.
Governor Fashola, who noted that the
highest levels of the Military Command have expressed continuously their
commitment to supporting democracy and to subjecting themselves and their
officers to the laws of the country, declared, “Those officers that I caught
today are a very bad example for the Military”.
The Governor said he had already made
a representation to the superiors of the culprits expressing optimism that they
would be sanctioned appropriately. He, however, added, “But it signifies my
commitment and the commitment of the Lagos State Government that all those who
will not comply with our laws should leave our State. We will not back down”.
“There is a zero tolerance for
lawlessness. There is zero tolerance for breach of our regulations and we are
going to do more of this. We are going to take control over our traffic. We
cannot build our way out of traffic congestion; our responsibility is to manage
traffic and manage congestion”, the Governor said.
Insisting that people must behave
themselves, Governor Fashola declared, “I don’t use the BRT lane, I sit down in
traffic and I expect everyone who wants to drive his car to do the same. The
alternative is to use the bus”.
“The bus is for those who cannot
afford to buy cars. They have the right also to use the road and we cannot
encroach on that lane which we have reserved for them. This is democratization
of the road and I will defend it”, the Governor said.
Daily Independent, By Ekene Okoro, SNR.
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