Tribunal begins sitting on BRT/soldiers’ fracas in Lagos

The public sitting of a panel of enquiry on the alleged killing of a soldier by a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) driver began in Lagos on Tuesday.

On July 14, it was alleged that a BRT driver hit and killed a soldier on Ikorodu Road, which resulted to vandalism of several BRT buses, and stirred up concerns for the state government and the entire populace.

In order to ascertain the immediate and remote cause of the incident, the Lagos State government set up a tribunal to investigate the incident that took place at Palm Grove area of the state.

Chairman of the investigating tribunal – Justice Ebenezer Adebajo, as a means to ensure that justice is served, pleaded to the public for witnesses at the incident to come forward with information as investigation was ongoing.

He went further, assuring the public that all those that would appear before the tribunal should not entertain any fear, stressing that they would be protected against any form of intimidation as the tribunal would ensure confidentiality of witnesses where it is required.

According to Justice Adebajo, this is the only way to ensure that the tribunal does a thorough job and makes appropriate recommendation that would ensure that such ugly incident does not happen again.

Prior to that, a statement from the spokesman of the 81 Division in Lagos, Lieutenant Colonel Omale Ochaguba told the press, “…a BRT bus knocked down and killed a soldier around Obainkoro area while on his way to the office.

“The driver of the bus took the body of the soldier into the bus and attempted to drive away. But when the other soldiers who witnessed the incident rushed to the scene, the driver of the bus ran away with the key. The soldiers then secured the vehicle which was later towed away to safety in our custody.

“Area boys then took advantage of the incident and started attacking BRT Buses. From observation you will discover that, the BRT buses burnt were far away from the scene of the incident and that the BRT bus in particular that killed the soldier was not attacked nor vandalized and it is still intact”. He said.

Although the military was not present at the inaugural sitting, Justice Adebajo claimed that the chief of army staff, Major General Kenneth Minimah and the Brigade Commander of the 9th Mechanised Division, Ikeja Cantonment, Brigadier General Lubo has assured him that they would appear before the tribunal.

Another member of the panel, Jude Igbanoi also said that the tribunal expanded its scope of activities as it is prepared to take memoranda from people who want to remain anonymous.

Every year, states lose millions of dollars to vandalism as it has the potential to cost so much to clean-up. Because the destruction of public and private property poses a threat to society, modern statutes make vandalism a crime.

The penalties upon conviction may be a fine, a jail sentence, an order to pay for repairs or replacement, or all three. In addition, a person who commits vandalism may be sued in a civil tort action for damages so that the damaged property can be repaired or replaced.