Mile 12 crisis: Oba of Lagos vents, issues warning
– Oba Rilwan Akiolu blames traditional rulers in Ketu and Ikosi communities for the Mile 12 crisis
– Says rulers were too distant from the community
– Calls for the crisis to stop
Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu has called on the Lagos state government and security agencies to ensure that adequate punishment is meted to culprits of the Mile 12 mayhem.
The Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu has called on the police and the Lagos state government to fish out and punish the culprits of the Mile 12 mayhem that claimed many lives and destroyed properties in the state.
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The Oba who gave the charge on Tuesday March 8, at a meeting of all parties concerned held in his Iga Iduganran palace, blamed traditional rulers in Ketu and Ikosi communities for not handling issues well prior to the inter-tribal clash.
According to Leadership, Akiolu said the monarchs had prioritized extortion of the citizenry over administering the market area.
He said the rulers were too distant from the community, otherwise the disagreement, though natural in human communities, would not have escalated to full scale war.
“How many times did you hear that those (Hausa and Yoruba traders) around here fight? It can never happen around here. But you are too far from them. You said that they don’t respect you. It is because you kept demanding money from them, which I don’t do around here (Lagos Island). That is why you will have no respect among them.”
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He called for such crisis to stop henceforth and for the culprits to be punished even if they were his own kinsmen.
The Oba supported the proposal by the state Assembly for the relocation of the popular Mile 12 market, but noted that the relocation should however be embarked upon if it will bring peace and tranquillity to the communities.
Meanwhile, the Lagos state government on Friday, March 5, met with all the stakeholders from Mile 12 market, Agiliti community, Maidan and its environs with a view to finding a lasting solution to the violence that led to the closure of the market.
Secretary to the state government, Tunji Bello, who presided over the meeting held at the state secretariat, Alausa, said that all the leaders agreed on the need to cohabit in peace irrespective of their religion, culture or tribes.
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