…Hoodlums stall food distribution in Lagos, Mile 12 traders allege
Situation under control, say police The activities of hoodlums in some parts of Lagos State during the current lockdown period have continued to hamper the distribution of food items and other perishables from the Mile 12 International Market along Ikorodu road to smaller markets and homes in the state, traders in the market have alleged. […]
- Situation under control, say police
The activities of hoodlums in some parts of Lagos State during the current lockdown period have continued to hamper the distribution of food items and other perishables from the Mile 12 International Market along Ikorodu road to smaller markets and homes in the state, traders in the market have alleged.
The Chairman of the Mile 12 International Market, Alhaji Shehu Usman Jibril, said there had been an increase in the attacks on trucks conveying staple foods to traders in markets across the state.
Jubril’s claim came amid assurances by the security agencies that the state was safe and calm.
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Bala Elkana, in a chat with Daily Trust, compared the fear being raised by the traders as similar to the panic recently created about alleged attacks by a criminal gang called the ‘One Million Boys’ in the state.
Elkana said the police authorities had increased patrols across the state, adding that there was no breakdown of law and order which could disrupt distribution of food items and perishables, as claimed by the market leaders.
But Jubril, speaking with newsmen, insisted that the market had been recording huge losses because of the drop in patronage, which he blamed on the ability of residents to access the market because of the lockdown and attacks by hoodlums on drivers conveying foodstuffs.
He said, “We don’t have problems conveying the foodstuffs to Lagos, but the challenges now are within the Lagos metropolis. We embarked on online marketing whereby people in Lagos place orders for foodstuffs to be supplied to them in their locations and homes. We have the Mile 12 mobile trading that we do, which has recorded successes in a short time.
“When we made supplies to Surulere, Area Boys in that locality ransacked our trucks and forcefully took away food items meant for customers who had ordered them.
“Another flash spot is the Lekki axis. Our trucks on that route were blocked and the attackers made away with more than 100 tubers of yams and two bags of rice, alongside other items, in one swoop.”