LASTMA Officials Kill Danfo Driver

A commercial bus driver was yesterday killed by an official of the Lagos State Traffic ManagementAuthority , LASTMA, at Brown Bus stop in Oshodi, around 6.30a.m. Narrating what led to the deathof 54-year-old Isaac Popoola, his 56-year-old conductor, Aremu Salau, said that they loaded the buswith 17 passengers from Isheri heading towards Oshodi, when about seven LASTMA, officials doublecrossed their bus. Salau said Popoola asked the LASTMA officials, why they wanted him to comedown since he didn't contravene any traffic law. But the LASTMA officials kept insisting that heshould get down from the bus. The conductor, added that the passengers in the vehicle alsointervened by asking what the driver did, but when the LASTMA officials did not listen to them andit didn't look as if it was going to be settled easily, they all had to get down and go their differentways. According to Salau, the LASTMA officials continued to struggle with Popoola, and in theprocess, they started beating him on the head with the iron of the vehicle's seat belt. They alsobegan hitting his head against the bus and in the process, the driver fainted. When they saw that hehad fainted the LASTMA officials ran away one after the other, but the people in the area caught oneof them, who said that it was his commandant that asked them to go after the driver. The conductorsaid that while he was looking for people to help him convey the driver to the hospital he found outthat people had already held one of the LASTMA officials and they had taken him to Isheri PoliceStation. Reacting to the allegation, the public relations officer of LASTMA, Bola Ajao said that theManagement of LASTMA, has dissociated itself from incident that led to the death of a commercialbus driver at Oshodi-Isale, Lagos. According to a statement released by the General Manager of theagency, Engr. Babatunde Edu at LASTMA Headquarters, Oshodi, the alleged officers -AdesanyaOlatunde and Ogunride Oludele- acted on their own contrary to the operational guidelines of theagency. Edu noted that Adesanya was identified by the Provost Marshall of the agency and handedover to the police while Oludele who was reported to be off-duty as at the time of the incident wasstill at large. He re-affirmed that the duo, were operating illegally at Oshodi this morning when thedeceased driver slumped. VN

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