The sprawling Ikorodu town and its suburbs have been in the news recently, and not for a good reason as several communities were sacked when armed militants unleashed terror and mayhem last week. Inhabitants of the affected communities are yet to come to grips with the violent attacks from the criminals that left many people dead, as many are still afraid of going back to their houses.

The armed militants, who double as oil bunkerers, claimed the residents sold them out to the police and vowed revenge on the helpless citizens, an attack which left over 30 people dead. Sadly, this is not the first time such an ugly incident would occur but the recent attack was massive in scale and casualties.

Several communities have been sacked and are at the mercy of pipeline vandals, miscreants and robbers who operate unhindered and even with the knowledge of security operatives, according to the residents. Many have lamented that they have been left to their fate, as both the government and security operatives seem to be indifferent or maybe are overwhelmed with the unabating level of criminal activities in the area. Crime is at an all time high in the zone and despite the presence of several police stations and army barracks, criminals, cultists and murderers operate freely.

The recent murder of a top member of a vigilante group in Ikorodu, Mr Afeez Oseni, has no doubt brought to the fore the level of insecurity the people of Ikorodu have to contend with on a daily basis.

Oseni, a chieftain of Onyabo vigilante group in Ikorodu Central, according to eyewitness accounts, was shot dead in broad daylight at the Aga area of the town by gunmen suspected to be cult members.

Narrating Oseni’s ordeal, a close source told The Guardian: “It was the set of boys that Oseni caught for robbery and handed over to the police that murdered him. The boys were sadly released from police custody only to come back to launch a reprisal attack.”

Like the late Oseni, many residents of Ikorodu have either been murdered or attacked by criminals. For instance, six decomposing bodies of young ladies were recovered from a canal in Ikorodu by the officials of the Lagos State Environmental Health Monitoring Team in December last year.

In spite of such daring insecurity threats, several Lagos residents are daily moving into Ikorodu. The Guardian learnt that few available infrastructures such as affordable housing and stable electricity supply as a result of proximity to Egbin power station have made Ikorodu attractive to some Lagosians.

But in-as-much as these facilities are relatively available, The Guardian gathered, that the town may have started witnessing several challenges that were not probably envisaged by successive governments.

One of such challenges, aside glaring insecurity, is poor planning, which has resulted in unappealing housing structures around Ikorodu. To make matters worse, lack of pipe-borne water is a major challenge. To make up for such challenges, The Guardian learnt that most households rely on water from boreholes to meet their daily water needs, a situation which experts say may have serious health implication for the towns’ future topography.

As part of the challenges, Ikorodu residents told The Guardian that they are daily facing harassments from cultists, armed robbers, oil thieves and kidnappers among others high-level criminals.

Ikorodu is situated at a distance of approximately 36 kilometres north of Lagos. The town is bounded on the South by the Lagoon; in the north, Ikorodu shares common boundary with Ogun State, while in the East, it has common boundary with Agbowa-Ikosi, a town in Epe Division of Lagos State.

The history of Ikorodu is as rich as the enviable track record of its sons and daughters who have not only excelled in their chosen careers, but have also left their footprints on virtually all the strata of national history. It is the history of a people whose ancestors, according to available history, descended from the Remo stock of Yoruba tribe who arrived and settled on a plateau and named it Ikorodu, a shortened word from-Oko Odu- which literally means Odu farm.

With time, Oko-odu changed to Ikorodu. The fact of the history seems to tilt in favour of one Oga as the founder of Ikorodu.

In recent times, oil thieves seem to have found a comfortable resting abode in Ikorodu, as the place is highly associated with oil bunkering. Despite several raids by the Nigerian Navy and Army at Ogolonto/Majidun and Isawo areas, the evil trade has continued unabated.

According to a taxi driver who simply gave his name as Baba Yellow, it is cheaper to buy petrol in the black market in Ikorodu than anywhere else, owing to the activities of pipeline vandals.

A visit by The Guardian to several areas in Isawo, Igbo-Olomu, Odogunyan, Ogijo revealed that the illegal product is still indeed being hawked. When The Guardian visited the town during the last fuel scarcity, fuel hawkers were seen smiling to the bank as five litres of the product was being sold as high as N1, 500.

Land grabbers are another challenge facing Ikorodu. The fear of buying land in Ikorodu is the beginning of wisdom for many. Several people have forfeited their landed property due to the nefarious activities of land grabbers popularly called Ajagungbale, The Guardian learnt.

The story of Mrs. Sarah Ibe, is insightful of how dangerous this trend has become in Ikorodu. Narrating her story, she told The Guardian that she bought a plot of land in 2010 at Igbogbo, Ikorodu, from a family and she was given correct, complete papers with the assurance that she wouldn’t have any problems when she was ready to develop it. Fast forward to a few years later, when she went to lay the foundation, an army of thugs descended on her and her workers, accusing them of working on stolen land. Even after presenting her papers, she was asked to pay N200, 000 before she could commence work. After several pleas, she got them to collect half of the amount and heaved a sigh of relief.

This was short-lived, however, because no sooner had they started work that another faction of thugs came, claiming the land belonged to their family and she needed to ‘settle’ them before working on the land. Ibe lamented that at every stage she was forced to cough out huge amounts of money, and before the house got to roof level, it was demolished and part of the land sold to someone else. Several meetings and pleas to get her property back didn’t work, and she was forced to abandon the land eventually.

A popular and feared land grabber in Ikorodu is ‘Sir K’ and just recently was involved in a fraction with the police at Isiu. Sir K and his retinue of thugs were accused of encroaching on the land belonging to Caleb University, and the police had to be called in because the thugs had come prepared with sophisticated weapons to wreck havoc.

According to a source in the police, the case had been with them for a while and was judged in favour of the university, but the land grabbers had other ideas. A couple of the thugs were arrested, but according to a source who pleaded anonymity, the boys would soon be released, stating that this was not the first time it would happen nor would it be the last.

Reacting to this, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Dolapo Badmus, insisted that the police was “on top of the situation and are going to prosecute those caught,” adding that “it would not be business as usual for these miscreants.”

Kidnapping and armed robbery have become a favourite past-time in Ikorodu.

The case of the students of Babington Macaulay Junior Seminary who were kidnapped from the school premises recently readily comes to mind. The kidnappers were caught and the students released but this again brings to the fore the overall poor security situation in Ikorodu.

Most of the inner road networks are in terrible condition and this makes it harder for police to pursue robbers as the criminals usually operate with motorcycles, popularly called okada.

Mr. Anthony (surname withheld) sells mobile phones and accessories at Ojubode, and according to him, he is about to relocate, not due to poor sales but due to the incessant robbery attacks that have beset the complex where his shop is located. In the space of about five months, he said, he as well as his colleagues have been robbed thrice and was lucky to escape with his life the last time. His neighbour was not so lucky, as the robbers shot him.

Just last year, bank robbery became almost a monthly affair as several banks were brazenly robbed in broad daylight with the robbers getting away via the waterways.

But Badmus, the police mouthpiece in Lagos State, said the police have improved, as no bank robbery case or major robbery case has been recorded since she assumed office in January this year.

The president of the Igbo-Olomu Central Working Committee, Chief Kolawole Adekoya, would not agree with such postulation, even as he said there is urgent need to stop the growing crime rate in Ikorodu before it becomes unmanageable.

Cultism and cultists have persisted like a cancerous sore in Ikorodu. There is hardly a week that passes that the cults are not involved in gang related wars and use this as a cover to rob innocent citizens. Most of the time, they are armed with sophisticated weapons and do not hesitate to use it to unleash terror on their perceived rivals.

Throughout last year, Ikorodu North was held in the grips of the Aiye/Eiye supremacy war and members of the local vigilante group called Onyabo as well as the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) had to be deployed to the affected areas as the boys were making the place inhabitable.

A member of the Onyabo group who spoke anonymously confided that they delivered immediate justice to anyone caught in the act so as to send a strong message to the others. Recently, members of Aiye confraternity, Eiye and Black Axe had a face-off at the Ladega area very close to Garage. They sent the whole area into confusion and if not for the timely intervention of the police, would have degenerated into massive casualties and looting. Badmus in a telephone interview with The Guardian confirmed that investigations have taken place and arrests have been made and the criminals charged to court.

According to her: “These boys live in the community, they are children to some parents, fathers to some children, husbands to some people, they’re not spirits, they’re known to people in the community. There is only so much the police can do; we rely on members of the public to give us information. Partner with us so we can get rid of this problem finally.”

Mr.James Akanji (not real names), a resident who lives in Igbo-
Olomu area of Ikorodu, said government was blame-worthy in the insecurity problems facing Ikorodu. “There are certain things that happened here that are not known to the government. But even when government is aware, they will keep silent,” Akanji said, adding, “you can imagine the number of years that bunkering has been going on here. We spoke against it, but government pretended as if it did not know. Not until about nine members of staff of the Department of State Service (DSS) were killed in Ikorodu that government then realised that it was a serious case.”

He continued: “ The oil thieves committed a lot of atrocities. There was a time they killed military men and policemen. On one occasion, these oil thieves went into Divisional Headquarters of Nigerian Police Station in Ikorodu, killed some policemen and took their bodies away. But government pretended as if nothing happened until the whole thing got out of hand and the thieves will just enter people’s houses and take their wives away and at times they would kill and do many other unprintable things, before government could deploy military men.”

Has the presence of the military men made any difference? “In fairness to the military men, one can say they have curtailed the activities of oil thieves. That is not to say that their nefarious activities have been eradicated. Unlike before when we used to open our two eyes to sleep, we can now close one eye to sleep. We still have oil bunkering in Ikorodu,” the Ikorodu resident said, adding, “we are appealing to government to allow the military men to continue to remain in Ikorodu or even increase their number.”

Akanji added that it would not be a bad idea if “government establishes a military barracks in Ikorodu to work against those who are sabotaging Nigerian economy.”

The Ikorodu resident said cultism has become a big headache for some residents. “ The membership of cultism in Ikorodu cuts across age, association, gender and tribe. Even children aged 10 in secondary schools belong to cults. We have seen small boys and girls belonging to cults in Ikorodu, because government at all levels, especially those at Ikorodu West Local Council have failed. They are not doing anything.”

To curtail criminal activities in Ikorodu, Akanji urged government to create jobs and provide social amenities.
“Government needs to create jobs to deflate the issue of insecurity in Ikorodu. We discovered that some of the people that are involved in oil bunkering are graduates. It is not that they do not want to work. The question is where is the work? We see some graduates riding okada and doing odd jobs to sustain themselves.

“Also government needs to provide social amenities that will make life bearable for the people. The roads in my area are so bad that residents in my community contributed over N3 million to grade our roads two weeks ago.

“We use our personal money to fix electricity here; we bought poles and wires; we electrify our community. But Ikeja DISCO still comes to collect bills. In spite of the money we have paid to secure electricity, we are not enjoying it. For over two months now, we have not had electricity supply.

“If government is serious, it should not concentrate development in urban centres. Government should also focus attention on rural areas like Ikorodu.”

Mr Martins Adeyemi, a resident of Oke-Aria, Ikorodu gave pass mark to security operatives in Ikorodu. “Before now, hoodlums used to rob and shoot people anyhow. But for sometime now, we have not experienced such, but thruthfully, we have organised security men to guard the area. Some of our people use Onyabo, while others use OPC. We pay N300 per flat, N200 per self-contained, N150 per room and parlour and N100 per room as security levy, ”Adeyemi said.

What is the attraction in Ikorodu? “It is very interesting to live in my area,” Adeyemi said. “ People are moving into Ikorodu because of the new road constructed by the Lagos State Government. And the house rent is cheaper in Ikorodu when you compare it with other parts of Lagos. For instance, while two bedroom flat goes for N200, 000 mini-flat goes for N150,000 in my area.”

The elders of Ikorodu are worried by the recent spate of cultism that is giving the town a bad name.

One of them, Chief Kamil Dada, the Regun of Ikorodu, said cultism is giving the town a bad name.

“There are some boys who called themselves Aye. Previously those cultists exist in some universities across the country, ” he said.

He disclosed that about five to six years ago, they started experiencing cultism in Ikorodu when some artisans and mechanics started fighting among themselves.

He recalled that a boy was recently killed somewhere in Ikorodu by some gangs.

Dada said that kidnapping recently became part of the insecurity challenges in Ikorodu.

“We have always worked for peace. As of recent, we discussed with the governor and the police how to make sure that all those boys who belong to different confraternities and gangs are subdued,” he said.

He said that they have resorted to meeting the parents of suspected cultists and talking to them on the implications of what their wards are doing.

According to him parents need to find out whether their children belong to gangs and take immediate action not cover them up.

He said that some of the culprits are known and they are being arrested.

The Secretary to the Lasunwon Ruling House, Ikorodu, Odofin Adegboyega Aliu, disclosed that security is very important.

He is worried that most of the graduates in Ikorodu are not fully employed. Aliu added that the omo-onile and land grabbers’ issue is part of the insecurity in Ikorodu.

“You buy property from somebody and you will later discover that it has been sold to another person. What kind of nonsense is that?”

Or one may get there, wanting to develop it and some people would appear, preventing one from working. “They will say the person must pay a certain amount of money. If you do not have the money, they will say you cannot work.”

He urged parents not to leave everything concerning the upbringing of their children to school teachers to handle.

“These children spend more time at home. Everybody should make sure they take good care of their wards. Let them know the right persons they should relate with.”

Pertaining to the development of Ikorodu, he recalled that years back their forefathers used to sing a song that Ikorodu will become headquarters where many people will come and settle.

“ Today, at times within Ikorodu you may spend three to four hours on the road, inside traffic. Even people coming from here or going to Mile 12 to Island are facing a lot of that.”

“So we need more roads to ease the traffic congestion. The Lagos State government came to our aid to expand the road to Ikorodu from Lagos. At the Ebute end towards Igboko road, they have done some expansion. We are still calling on the government to come to our aids to expand some of these roads so that wherever there is traffic you can pass another way.”

He reveals that from Ikorodu to Sagamu the road is slowly becoming impassable. From Ikorodu down to Agbowa/Ijebu- Ode the road is just one lane, “which is very narrow and filled with potholes. It was done since 1973 and since then, nothing. They are just patching and patching. We are begging the Lagos state government to come to our aid to fix our major and inner roads,” he said.