The police have intercepted a truckload of youths said to be from different parts of the north at the border between Lagos and Ogun states.
According to the police, the arrest was made following an intelligence report that the truck laden with tomatoes which was Lagos-bound, was also carrying a large number of young men.
The youths who appeared to be in their 20s and 30s were ordered to disembark from the truck, as the police said they would be taken to the task force office for further investigation.
There had been several cases of security personnel intercepting trucks carrying young men headed for the south mostly from the northern part of the country.
As a result of the development, many have raised concerns about the continued violation of the order restricting inter-state travel, as part of the measures to contain the spread of the COVID-19.
A file photo of fallen containers on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has been directed to impound trucks carrying containers without proper latching on highways in the country.
FRSC Corps Marshal, Dr Boboye Oyeyemi, gave the directive in a statement on Saturday by the Corps Public Education Officer, Bisi Kazeem.
He decried the continuous carriage of containers by flatbed trailers without proper latching and ordered the seizure of such vehicles by the patrol teams anytime they were sighted.
In a bid to get such dangerous trailers off the road, Oyeyemi revealed that the corps has cemented a partnership with the Nigerian Ports Authority to ensure that such vehicles were not allowed to leave the ports in the first instance.
According to him, trucks moving out of the ports would only be allowed unless they have fully complied with the maximum safety standards.
A file photo of FRSC Corps Marshal, Boboye Oyeyemi. Photo: Twitter- @FRSCNigeria
The FRSC boss stressed that the dangers of unlatched or improperly latched container-carrying trucks to lives and properties on the roads cannot be overlooked.
He explained that when the containers fall, they could lead to unnecessary road obstruction that would cause undue hardship to motorists who would have much of their travelling time wasted on the road.
“So, in order to avert this and put a stop to further recurrence, the corps marshal has directed the operatives of the corps to be on red alert and impound at sight, any of such trailers found in the act,” the statement said.
Oyeyemi also revealed that the corps would achieve this in friendly collaboration with other law enforcement agencies.
He urged road users to report any of such trucks seen on the highways without proper latching of containers.
The Anambra State government has restricted the time which vehicles laden with petroleum products can move in the state.
The Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment in the state, Mr Don Adinuba, announced this in a statement forwarded to Channels Television on Friday.
He explained that the decision followed the incessant collapse of trucks carrying petroleum products in the state recently, including the latest which happened in Onitsha on Thursday.
Adinuba stated, “With effect from Saturday, November 2, 2019, such vehicles can be allowed to move within Anambra State from only 8pm to 5am.
“The restriction is to enable agencies like the Anambra State Fire Service, the Nigeria Police Force, the Federal Road Safety Corps, the Civil Defence the Anambra Traffic Management Agency and indeed all other security, law enforcement, and safety agencies to respond effectively and in good time to emergencies created by such accidents which sometimes result in conflagrations, as was the case in Onitsha on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, when a tanker laded with a petroleum product fell on the Enugu-Onitsha Highway and caused a fire that spread up to Ochanga Market through the open drainage,” he added.
The government has directed the Anambra State Police Command and all other security agencies in the state to swing into action.
According to the commissioner, the security agencies are to “religiously enforce” the restriction order on the movement of trucks carrying petroleum products in the state.
They were also asked to ensure that such vehicles do not exceed the speed limit of 90 kilometres per hour in all parts of the state.
“Any violation of either the time restriction order or the speed limit will be punished accordingly.
“The protection of the life and asset of every person in Anambra State cannot be compromised,” Adinuba warned.
He, however, urged oil marketers, workers, tanker drivers and concerned persons among other stakeholders in the downstream oil sector to bear with the state government.
The commissioner asked them to adhere to the regulation which he noted was made strictly in the overriding interest of the public.
The Lagos State Government has ordered owners and operators of articulated vehicles, trailers, and petroleum tankers to stay away from the Apapa area of the city and its environs until it is able to find a solution to the unending traffic bottleneck.
The Acting Commissioner of Transportation in the state, Mr. Olanrewaju Elegushi explained that the directive would be enforced to eliminate the current hardship motorists face on the road every day.
He says the gridlock is worsened by the current rehabilitation of some major roads and other minor ones which necessitated the closure of some roads in Apapa.
This also follows part of the traffic gridlock being experienced by motorists on the third mainland bridge.
Troops had an encounter with fleeing Boko Haram terrorists and recovered armoured fighting vehicle, trucks, arms and ammunition from the insurgents.
The recovery was made on Wednesday morning by troops of 25 Task Force Brigade, Seven Division of the Nigerian Army on Operation Lafiya Dole, during a clearance operation at Dulsa and Buk in Damboa Local Government Area of Borno State.
The spokesman for the Army, Brigadier General Sani Usman, said in a statement that the soldiers neutralised a large number of the terrorists and wounded several others.
“At Dulsa this morning, the troops cleared the hideout of the terrorists during which they neutralised six Boko Haram terrorists, recovered one light machine gun, two rocket propelled grenade tubes and one extra anti-aircraft gun barrel.
“The troops also encountered Boko Haram terrorists’ camp at Buk where they were engaged by the terrorists.
“During the encounter, the troops neutralised a large number of the Boko Haram terrorists and wounded several others. They also made an unprecedented recovery.
“The items recovered include nine AK-47 rifles, three Fabrique Nationale rifles, two rocket propelled grenade bombs, one mortar tube, one Shilka, one gun truck mounted with anti-aircraft gun and two Hilux vehicles,” he siad.
General Usman, however, said that three soldiers paid the supreme price while five others were wounded in the action.
He added that one Mine-Resistant, Ambush-Protected vehicle belonging to the Brigade was badly damaged.
The Army spokesman said that the bodies of the late soldiers and those that sustained injuries have since been evacuated.
He also noted that the wounded soldiers are in stable condition.
Troops had an encounter with fleeing Boko Haram terrorists and recovered armoured fighting vehicle, trucks, arms and ammunition from the insurgents.