Arewa leaders dismiss alleged plan to wreak havoc in Lagos

By Dapo Akinrefon

LAGOS—LAGOS State chairman of Arewa Council of Chiefs, Alhaji Idris Yaro Dogara, has dismissed alleged plans by Hausa/Fulani from the North to invade Lagos State to cause havoc.

He also called on the people of Lagos State to dismiss the text messages flying about, describing those behind the plot as alarmist.

Addressing newsmen in Lagos yesterday, Alhaji Dogara described those who sent the messages, to cause panic in the South West especially in Lagos, as alarmist.

According to him, “The reason our council invited you is to difuse tension in Lagos State. If there are people who must come to Lagos, we must know and since the crisis started in Jos, we have had government officials calling me about the incident. It is a hoax. We do not have any problem with anyone in Lagos. If the Fulanis are coming from the north to Lagos, we must know; these people sending these text messages are alarmists. It’s all rubbish. We all live in peace.”

He, however, dismissed as untrue that the strike embarked upon by the Northern traders over alleged multiple taxation on the part of government, saying “a peaceful strike is enshrined in the constitution of the country. The issue is about multiple taxation and they are fighting it in a peaceful manner because it’s their fundamental human rights.”