16 June 2005
editorial
Lagos — FOR all the attractions that Lagos holds as centre of excellence and the hub of the nations commercial city, it is by no means a city for the faint-hearted. It is a city in which only the tough can survive. It is not for nothing, that Lagos means so much for so many people.
Despite the pull and push that has made Lagos a city of first choice for many who seek a good head-start in life, Lagos has its unique draw-backs, one of which is the menace of social miscreants otherwise known as Area Boys and motor park touts called Agberos in local parlance.
For three unending days last month (May 22 - 24), and early this week, business and commercial activities were paralysed as social misfits took over two commercial hub spots - Oshodi and Mile 2.
In the fracas of last month at Oshodi, between members of the Odua Peoples Congress (OPC) and touts, a military officer was reportedly killed. The military in solidarity with their departed colleague sought a revenge. For three days a contingent of military personnel raided major hotspots and bus-stops in the metropolis. The target was mainly the touts. Lagosians heaved a sigh of relief, but that problem re-surfaced early this week, and commuter drivers and touts engaged themselves in a fight for supremacy, again paralysing economic activities, forcing commuters to trek long distances to their various destinations.
Indeed, it is not the first time that these ugly incidents had happened in Lagos. But the recurrence is fast making the city increasingly unsafe and unpredictable for business and commercial activities to take place unhindered.
In all the violence that often trailed the skirmishes between these contending social miscreants and police or among rival touts, goods have been lost, commercial activities are either dislocated or outrightly paralysed. The fact that these miscreants continue to hold residents hostage, means something urgent must be done about them.
We note with sadness that over the years, Agberos have rapidly increased at major motorparks and bus-stops. These Agberos are sometimes fired up by a dosage of alcohol and other dangerous drugs. Joblessness could be one major reason for this upsurge, but more than that, the Lagos state's assurance to rid the city of this menance has not been realised. It is high time the Lagos State government took this social malaise with all seminars it require.
In this regard, with the obvious threat to life and property that their activities entail, this is the time for the government to carry out its earlier promise to quarantine these misfits to camps where they can be made to acquire some skills to help themselves.
We think the relevant authorities can stamp out the nefarious activities of Agberos and area boys. One sure way to do this is to enact a law that will make the activities of touts unlawful and punishable. Beyond that, the problem of multiplicity of rival road transport unions which are sometimes responsible for high transport fares has to be also addressed to stem the attendant rivalry and their disruptive effects on social life.
It is indeed dangerous to ignore the activities of these social misfits at the expense of the collective well-being of the people, peace and orderliness that our society requires at this critical stage of our democratic experiment. It therefore behoves the State government to, as a matter of urgency initiate genuine and concrete measures that will make the activities of Agberos a risky venture to indulge in. Lagos government for all that matters, will be the greatest beneficiary if it can sanitise the state by getting rid of these miscreants.
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