A policeman was on Monday mobbed at the Ojota end of Ikorodu Road, Lagos, for allegedly causing an accident in which no fewer than 13 passengers in a commercial bus escaped death by a whisker.
An eyewitness, who gave his name simply as Osa, told PUNCH METRO that the bus was coming from Mowe, Ogun State, and was heading for Ketu.
However, the bus driver stopped on the bridge facing the MKO Abiola Park in order to allow some of the passengers to alight. Osa said unknown to the driver, the policeman was standing by and accosted the driver for parking on the bridge.
He added that the policeman then got inside the bus and ordered the driver to park under the Ojota Bridge.
Osa said, “Although the driver did not park, he pleaded with the policeman to pardon him. But the policeman insisted on arresting him. Consequently, a tussle for the control of the steering wheel ensued between the policeman and the driver while the bus was on high speed.
“The policeman suddenly pulled the handbrake of the vehicle and it somersaulted. Most of the passengers sustained injuries.”
Our correspondent gathered that some youths at the scene of the accident immediately rescued the passengers, while others brought out the policeman, tied his feet with a rope before beating him to a pulp.
The timely arrival of riot policemen prevented the policeman from being lynched. In a bid to disperse the mob, the riot policemen used the butt of their guns to hit the crowd, while some innocent onlookers were also harassed in the process.
The bus driver was immediately arrested and an ambulance came to convey the brutalised policeman as well as other wounded passengers to Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja.
Osa said, “Why should a policeman or traffic official be struggling for control of the steering wheel while a vehicle is in motion? Even if he does not care about the bus driver or the conductor, at least he should consider the safety of the innocent passengers.
“I witnessed how the policeman struggled with the bus driver and when he couldn’t apprehend the driver, why didn’t he just write down his number plate and arrest him later? It was the manner with which the policeman tried to arrest the bus driver that led to the accident.”
However, another eyewitness, who craved anonymity, condemned the youths for attacking the policeman, saying that it was wrong for them to take the law into their hands.
“The manner in which that policeman was beaten was very wrong. For God’s sake, he was also a victim of the accident and was equally wounded. Why then inflict more injury on him?” he asked.
Another eyewitness, who blamed the policeman for causing the accident, said while traffic offenders should be apprehended, it was wrong for policemen and other traffic officials to employ crude methods to arrest errant drivers.
“Let the government give them a re-orientation and retraining. It is only by so doing that they can carry out their duties effectively and in a civil manner. If you cannot arrest a law breaker immediately, why not write down his/her number plate and deal with the matter later?” he asked.
When the Police Public Relations Officer, Lagos State Police Command, Mr. Samuel Jinadu, was called for his reaction, he said he had not been briefed by the Divisional Police Officer of the area where the incident occurred and asked our correspondent to call back.
When he was called on the telephone the second, third and fourth time, Jinadu insisted that he had not been briefed on the incident.
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