Taiwo Jimoh
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| IGP, Mohammed Adamu |
Fagba area of Lagos State was a shadow of itself on October 30, 2020, that our reporter visited the scene.
The remains of burnt houses, shops, malls and vehicles were sighted at different areas. The dead bodies, witnesses said, had been moved to mortuaries by government officials.
While miscreants, pretending to be #EndSARS protesters, took to burning police stations, attacking policemen and looting shops, Hausa and Yoruba at Fagba embarked on ethnic clash.
Days after the ethnic violence, many people are still counting their losses. The warring factions, determined to outdo each other, killed, maimed and destroyed property belonging to people.
The General Overseer of Warrior for Christ Mission Church, Pastor Solomon Ajao, is one of those still crying his eyes out.
He said his church and mission house, which were part of what he had laboured and acquired in his life, were razed during the ethnic clash.
Ajao, choking on emotion, said that both the church and mission house were built 27 years ago. He said that he didn’t know how to embark on a fresh start. He also said that his newly bought Spot Utility Vehicle (SUV), to aid his mission work, was burnt.
“After our Sunday service, a message came from the Lord Almighty that I should proceed to the mountain to pray. After relaxing for a while, I went to the mountain in the Ifo area of Ogun State to pray as directed by God. A few hours after I got to the mountain, I received a call from my wife that some hoodlums had been blocking the roads at Fagba, preventing vehicles from driving through. I was told the hoodlums protesting blocked the road and prevented trucks conveying goats and cattle from accessing the cow market in the area.
“I was told the hoodlums were demanding money from the two truck drivers before they would allow them to drive into the market. The drivers, who were carrying goats and cattle, got angry when the hoodlums started looting the goat from the truck. The drivers left their trucks and went into the market to inform owners of the goats and the cattle. To the shock of everyone, Hausa hoodlums came and started hurling stones at the Yoruba hoodlums. This happened on October 19,” the general overseer said.
Ajao further explained that on October 20, as the clash began to escalate, his wife, children and those in the mission house ran to a church member’s house for safety.
The following day, which was a Wednesday, hoodlums from both sides started setting houses on fire. They also set fire to Ajao’s church and mission house.
They also set a pharmacy store, an event centre and a lot of other property on fire. They killed and injured many people.
He added: “When I got to my church on Thursday morning, everything had been razed. In fact, not a single item was brought out of my church. My Jeep, which I had just bought, was burnt. Our clothes, including those of our children, were burnt. If I didn't go to the mountain to pray, I don't know what would have happened to me. Maybe I would have been dead because I would have tried to salvage some things from the church and mission house. I would have confronted the hoodlums. This is not the first time we are witnessing such an incident in the Fagba area. Virtually everyone in Lagos knew Fagba to be synonymous with violence. There are some Hausa who are nice and others who are troublemakers.
“The cart pushers are usually the troublemakers. I have a Close Circuit Camera (CCTV) in my church and whenever I check the footage, I see some of the cart pushers stealing goods in the market. I have tried my best to see how we can contain the Yoruba and Hausa hoodlums. You’ll see them smoking Indian hemp at the railway station. I put my hope on God, hoping to rebuild the church. The solution to the constant ethnic clashes is to confine the Hausa to the market alone. Some of them don't have a good house; they sleep in shops and if you discover your goods are missing, don't go far; just go to the cart pushers in the market.”
Substantiating Ajao’s story, a pharmacist, working with Shekinah Pharmacy, located at Fagba bus stop, said he would only speak on the condition of anonymity.
He opined that some of the Hausa people at Fagba were becoming intolerable. He explained that the mayhem at Fagba was simply because Hausa and Yoruba youth couldn’t reach an amicable settlement. He said that before one could say Jack Robison, the crisis had escalated beyond control.
“I was supposed to resume by 11am on the fateful day of the clash and was still at home when my boss called and asked me to stay home, that Fagba was boiling. When I got to the area the following day, the building that housed our pharmacy had been razed. I was told the hoodlums looted every drug in our shop. A shop close to ours, where they sell bags, was also looted before they set it on fire. I learnt a lot of people were killed. It was quite unfortunate,” the pharmacist said.
The owner of Babington Driving School, Mr. Rafiu Babalola, recalled that when the hoodlums started fighting on Tuesday, he had to run for his life.
He said: "It was when I came back on Wednesday that I discovered my four vehicles, which I used for training in my school, had been burnt. In fact, several other vehicles and valuables were looted in my shop and those of my neighbours. About 14 cars were burnt aside from the four that belonged to me in our complex alone. Churches and event centres were torched by the hoodlums. Even some of my goods were later recovered from some cart pushers in the market.”
A tricycle operator, Mr. Sunday Olanipekun, said that he and his colleagues were not spared at their Iju Park.
He said: “When the fight started on that fateful Tuesday, I left the park with my tricycle and went home fearful of being hit by stray bullets. On Wednesday, when I went back, every building had been razed. Even D2 Guest House and Dedoja Shopping Complex were razed. There was chaos everywhere. I was told some Yoruba and Hausa people were killed. At least 17 of my colleagues’ tricycles were burnt and many of them no longer have a source of income. Government should come to their aid."
A food seller at Daddy Savage Street, who was rumoured to have been butchered by Hausa during the clash, was found hale and healthy by our correspondent. The woman, Mrs. Christiana Ayoola, who spoke with our correspondent in her shop, said nothing happened to her or her children. Ayoola explained that her rumoured death was spread by enemies who wanted her dead.
She said: “I was surprised when my children called my attention to a story on social media, that I had been killed. I was annoyed. The report stated that my head was cut off and my body cut into pieces. I’m alive! Nothing happened to me. I’m still selling my food. I was in my shop on the day the fight was about to start. I have been at Fagba for over 35 years. I know the way the Hausa behave whenever they want to start fighting. Immediately I noticed it, I brought out the food I had already prepared and gave it to some residents to eat. When they were done with the food, I went home and came back after the dust had settled. I don't know where people got the information that I had been killed. It was on Thursday that I saw the news.”
A resident, who gave his name simply as Idowu, said that although many people were killed and injured, he couldn’t tell how many.
Another resident, Aina, said he and his family members continued to sleep in their burnt house because they had nowhere else to go.
He said: “We only managed to reconstruct two rooms where we are sleeping. We don't have anywhere to lay our heads. The hoodlums looted our house and shops. People sustained a lot of injuries on the fateful day. Many were attacked with dangerous weapons while attempting to flee the scene of the violence. The hoodlums smashed windscreens of vehicles parked on the road.”
The spokesperson for the Arewa in the market, Mr. Abdulahi Haruna, said the lawmaker representing Ifako-Ijaiye Constituency I, Temitope Adewale, had set up a committee comprising the leaders from the Yoruba and Hausa communities to find a lasting solution to the problem.
He added: “Sadly, lives were lost and lots of property destroyed. We have appealed to our energetic youth to stop all forms of violence and destruction in the community. We cannot afford to mess up where we are making a living. It was a little misunderstanding that led to the burning and looting of shops in the area.
“Whenever our people are bringing cows and goats, nobody stops them, except the traffic light. We have a way of reaching out to the Yoruba youth and other government officials. It was an unfortunate incident. Many property were razed. I pray we don't witness such an incident again.
“Some of us were born in this community. Our children also marry Yoruba ladies. We’re all Nigerians. Anywhere we find ourselves, is our town. Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu was here last week for an on-the-spot-assessment. He warned both parties that he didn’t want ethic clashes. He said that he wanted us to live in peace and harmony.”
When contacted to confirm if suspects were arrested in connection with the clash, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Muyiwa Adejobi, promised to get back to our correspondent, but, at press time, he was yet do so.
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