WHERE laws are flouted with impunity, lawlessness reigns. Impunity nurtures the constant lawlessness of the military. Nothing justifies lawlessness or its perpetration.

The mayhem last week on Ikorodu Road Lagos, where soldiers burnt buses, disrupted public transportation, and brutalised civilians, is lawlessness – it should be punished. The army statement excusing the unruly conduct of the soldiers and blaming street urchins for the destruction of public and private property is an insult on the public and a re-statement of the comfort the military enjoys in operating above the law.

It should not. Both civilian and military authorities have to bring the soldiers who staged the breakdown of law and order on Ikorodu Road to book. They always get away with it. We must end the lawlessness.

Our sympathies go to the family of the soldier a BRT bus killed on Ikorodu Road. His death could be the immediate cause of the soldiers’ misbehaviour, but the issue is deeper. Soldiers have disdain for civilians.

They refuse to be law-abiding. They abuse the BRT lane that is reserved for specific public transport buses. The death of their colleague merely gave them cover to vent their anger on the public. They are willing, ready, and often spoiling for a fight with civilians.

Their conduct on Ikorodu Road, and other parts of the country, where they unleash mayhem at the slightest incident, questions control of their operations. How did about 100 armed soldiers take over Ikorodu Road within minutes of the accident? Who authorised their release? Who commanded them? Who issued the arms they bore? What operation did they log for their movement?

Was the army embarrassed that it disrupted a city’s transportation system for hours over a traffic accident? It was not.

The army’s official statement said, “The Nigerian Army is a professional force which is law-abiding. The military is a highly disciplined organisation which also takes necessary steps to see that its erring members are brought to book at any time the need arises to enforce discipline.” There is need to discipline those unruly soldiers.

It is insulting for the army to state that, “The mayhem visited on the BRT buses was the handiwork of hoodlums.” The rampaging, uniformed soldiers are identifiable, which is why they beat up those who took pictures of the commotion. The army is protecting its own.

Chief of Army Staff Lt.-Gen. Kenneth Minimah was commanding Bonny Camp, Lagos, three years ago, when soldiers imposed similar chaos on Ikorodu Road. Their anger was that traffic managers stopped them from using the BRT lane. Minimah then promised an end to such incidents.

Lawlessness persists when its perpetrators are not punished, but protected, maybe promoted.