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130 renounce cultism in Lagos, return arms

By Odita Sunday
16 March 2018   |   4:25 am
More than 130 young men yesterday renounced their membership of cult gangs in Badagry area of Lagos State. This brings to about 1,000 suspected members of different confraternities who have openly renounced their membership in the last six months in the state.

Imohimi Edgal

More than 130 young men yesterday renounced their membership of cult gangs in Badagry area of Lagos State. This brings to about 1,000 suspected members of different confraternities who have openly renounced their membership in the last six months in the state.

At yesterday’s event, which was held at the Badagry West Local Council secretariat, Ajara, the repentant former cultists, who were mainly from Eiye and Aiye, also surrendered their weapons to the Lagos State police command. Arms surrendered include AK 47 rifles, pump action guns, locally-made double barrel and single barrel guns, AK 47 ammunition, cartridges and cutlasses.

The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal, who received the former cultists, said cultism was the biggest recurring problem in Lagos. Edgal, while urging parents and proprietors of primary and secondary schools to take proper documentation of those entering and leaving the school premises, said the command was making progress in ensuring that the menace of cultism is checked. 

He said: “This is a big problem, which is intertwined with drug abuse even to the ridiculous extent of taking it to primary schools and recruiting pupils into cultism. I remember the experience at Ikorodu, where over 250 boys and girls of cult groups renounced and surrendered arms after which I urged other communities to emulate Ikorodu’s bold step.

He, therefore, called on various local government, communities, cleric and other relevant bodies across the states as a matter of urgency to declare state of emergency in the fight against cultism using the stick method while calling on the Lagos State House of Assembly to pass stiffer laws – using carrot method – in fighting against cultism in Lagos.

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