The protest by the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, in Lagos was yesterday reportedly hijacked by suspected hoodlums who unleashed mayhem on the protesting unionists in Lagos.
The hoodlum were said to have defiled all the security measures put in place by the police to protect public and government facilities ahead of the planned strike by the NLC.
Witnesses told New Telegraph that the hoodlums from Mushin, Bariga, and Somolu hijacked the protests around 7 am at Fadeyi area and started unleashing mayhem on the protesters.
In a bid to foil the protest, the hoodlums had blocked the entire stretch of Fadeyi, forcing motorists heading towards Ojuelegba to turn back and people to run helter-skelter.
It was gathered that some of the hoodlums were armed with dangerous weapons such as machetes and axes to attack and rob some of the motorists.
The newspaper reports that although no life was lost, some pedestrians and motorists sustained different degrees of injuries, while several cars parked on the road were vandalised.
Some anti-riot policemen were later seen patrolling the area about 9 am but their attempt to manage the situation was rebuffed by the rioters, who pelted the policemen with stones.
It was gathered that some soldiers from Abalti Barracks, Ojuelegba, to area came and brought the situation under control.
A resident of the area, Olufemi Momo-du, revealed that the people were going about their normal business about 7am when the protest started.
He said, “Although it started peacefully, we were surprised it even held. This is because we heard on the radio that the Industrial Court banned the strike.
“Also, the Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, asked us to go about our daily activities without fear.
“So imagine our fear when some of the area boys that have been constituting nuisance in our area joined the protesters.
“On my own part, I closed my shop because they were already vandalising people’s shops and looting their goods.
“They held our area hostage until the police and soldiers arrived the scene.”
The riot reportedly caused gridlock on Palmgrove and Yaba ends of the road to Maryland Bridge.
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