By Olasunkanmi Akoni
It was an event Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State was scheduled to hand over 250 taxi cabs to taxi operators in the state as part of on-going efforts to phase out rickety cabs in the state. But the event was to be temporarily disrupted by a bomb scare which created panic beyond the confines of the State Secretariat, Alausa.

The rumour about the bomb scare was disseminated through phone calls and text messages to some of the guests and civil servants at the event held within the premises of the Governor’s Office.

Gov. Fashola was represented by his Deputy, Mrs. Sarah Sosan with Bamidele Badejo, Commissioner for Transportation, Mr. Babatunde Balogun of Home Affairs and Culture, and Mrs. Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire of Women Affair and Poverty Alleviation in attendance.

State Secretariat Alausa, Lagos: Under bomb threat?

Some guests at the event, who got wind of the development quietly took to their heels. But no so for the dignitaries at the front table as they were unperturbed, being oblivious  of the news of the bomb explosion.

Some few minutes later press men attached to Governor Fashola’ press crew quickly called some of their members who were unaware of the development to move away from the venue. They, however, warned them to be alert and careful as there was plan by some terrorists to bomb the state secretariat.

At the event, Vanguard Metro saw a good number of security operatives attached to the state Rapid Response Squad, RRS, being briefed and deployed to various strategic areas in Ikeja to maintain peace and order.

Shortly after the information began to circulate, news filtered in that a similar situation was playing out at Motor-Ways Plaza and other offices at the Old Toll Gate, Ojota along the Lagos-Ibadan express road.

It was learnt that the occupants of the Plaza which was very close to one of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC oil pipelines, on learning of the bomb threat ran indifferent directions for safety.

Subsequently, the managements of Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, LAMATA and other offices at the Plaza as well other offices quickly, directed their staff to stay away for few days in order to allow for tension to come down as well as allow police to carry out adequate investigation.

The men of Anti-Bomb Squad of the Nigeria Police who were quickly drafted to the scene put the premises under lock and key as they cordoned off the area, turning back all persons who attempted to go into the compound.

As at press time, the entrance and exit gates of the complex were still under lock with stern- looking policemen keeping guard in the area.
Subsequently, five companies occupying the plaza were quickly evacuated by the Anti-bomb squad.

The companies are Multilinks communication, Office of the Public Defender, OPD, Oceanic Bank, Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, LAMATA and others.

The companies within the complex include Multilinks communication, Office of the Public Defender, OPD, Oceanic Bank among others.
However, the situation which has aroused fear in every Lagos resident has been allayed by the police, with the police hierarchy in Abuja, saying the police have put adequate measures on ground to protect lives and property in the state.

According to one of the security officers at the premises who chose to speak under anonymity, they were ordered not to open the gate to any customer because the anti-bomb detectives are still combing the complex to detect if there was any bomb yet to be detected.

He added that foreign experts on bomb detective were drafted to the premises to assist the anti-bomb squad of the Nigeria Police Force.

The officer however, said some of the staff of the companies were allowed into the building in order to assist the anti-bomb detectives gain access to their offices for them to carry out investigation and find out if there was any bomb in the complex.

Vanguard gathered that the premises had been declared safe for business activities after police certified the place okay, and asked workers to return to their job.

Consequently upon this, the police hierarchy in Abuja and Lagos dismissed the bomb threat message, saying the police have put adequate measures on ground to protect lives and property in the state.

One of the staff at the Plaza who simply identified himself as Mr Kola condemned the spate of bombings in Nigeria, describing as “callous and senseless” the trend of killing fellow human beings like animals.

He said: “I can’t understand why some people have decided to make Nigeria a battle ground. I think the people behind this dastardly act are cowards, killing fellow human beings like chickens without conscience.

“My advice to them is to have a change of heart and find something beneficial to do rather than engaging in a fruitless mission”.

Speaking with State House correspondents after the meeting which took place at Lagos House, Ikeja, Mr Marvel Akpoyibo who spoke against the background of the bomb scare created by some text messages said nothing untoward would take place in Lagos State if everyone remains vigilant and committed in ensuring safety of life and property.

He said: “Since December, we have embarked on effective patrol of our roads and waterways and we are mindful of the security alert already raised in other parts of the country.

“We must synergize and exchange ideas and information on a regular basis because once we are able to do this we won’t have any problem”.

Akpoyibo explained that the meeting also reviewed the security arrangement on ground and will intensify the patrol of the waterways and other public places to ensure the safety of life and property.

The Police Commissioner, who said the Security Council was not unaware of some of the spurious text messages being circulated, warned that it is an offence to circulate such frightening text messages which are aimed at creating fear and scare.

“If anybody has any good information concerning safety of life and property in Lagos, there are various ways by which such information can be passed. We have 767 and 112 that are toll free emergency lines. Rather than circulating such scary text messages, they should pass it to us so that we can deal with them decisively,” he said.

He also advised members of the public who are owners of vehicles that are recklessly parked to remove such vehicles forthwith, warning that if they are not removed, the Ministry of Transport, Lagos State Transport Management Authority (LASTMA) and Police are under directives to ensure the removal of such vehicles.