How we intercepted 70 vehicles for traffic violations in 48 hours, and a “Danfo Conductor” stabbed our officer in the head with a screw driver – LASTMA
An assistant to a commercial bus driver, known as Danfo Conductor, has buried an half lenght of a screw driver on the head of an officer of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA).
Platforms Africa reports that this attack, which occured at Ojota axis in Kosofe Local Government Area of the state, came hours after the authority (LAsTMA) announced that its men impounded 70 vehicles within 48 hours.
The officer, who was soaked in blood, was said to have been attacked with the sharp object by the commercial driver who is currently on the run.
The assaulted LASTMA officer, identified as Hassan K, was attacked by the commercial driver who took to his heels upon sighting blood gushing down from his victim’s head.
Confirming the development, the LASTMA General Manager, Bolaji Oreagba, said that the traffic officer was attacked and severely injured with a screw driver on the head while carrying out his official duty at his beat under Ojota Interchange inwards Ketu.
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According to him, the officer was immediately rushed to a nearby hospital where his health has been stabilised as revealed by the Zonal Head of that beat.
“The commercial bus driver and his conductor took to their heels after carrying out the assault on the LASTMA officer. The driver of the yellow Volkswagen bus, popularly called ‘vanagon’, with plate number LSD 28 XY, was found passing through the dedicated BRT corridor at Ojota towards Ketu when he was accosted,” Oreagba said.
Meanwhile, the Director of Operations, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Mr Peter Gbejemege, has disclosed that the authority intercepted 70 various types of vehicles for violating traffic laws.
Gbejemege who led the LASTMA team to monitor the two-day enforcement operations made the disclosure after the operations in Lagos Thursday.
“Our jobs is to ensure there is free flow of traffic within Lagos and we have zero tolerance for BRT violator,” he said.
Gbejemege urged the motorists and the commercial vehicles operators to stop plying BRT corridor warning drivers not to stop at unauthorized bus-stops.
Also speaking, the Controller, Traffic Management, LASTMA, Mr Ayo Osintimehin, described the operation as an enforcement and checkmating drivers compliance along BRT corridors within Lagos Metropolis.
Osintimehin said that only BRT business were authorized to ply the BRT routes and also monitor indiscriminate packing of vehicles on the highways.
“We arrest some vehicles packed at bus-stops because the bus-stops is meant to picking and dropping passengers.
”Any private vehicles parked at the bus stop will arrested because that is obstructions.
“We also arrest some commercial vehicles packed on the highways trying to get passengers,” he said.
He advised the drivers to be law abiding adding that the present government had zero tolerance on traffic obstruction.
While ensuring Lagos was traffic free, the Head of operations, LASTMA Healthcare, Mr Oluyemi Adeoye, said that the operation was basically meant to bring sanity on BRT corridors.
“Although when the commercial transporters observed their appearance that they will pretend to comply and as soon as they ended the operations that commercial business would go back on indiscriminate obstructions on the highways.
“We will continue on our operation in ensuring Lagos is traffic free and any violator will serve as deterrent to others,” he said.
