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Cause Massive Gridlock
- Safiu Kehinde
Victims of the demolition exercise by the Lagos state government at Oworonshoki area of the state have on Monday blocked the Third Mainland bridge in protest over the demolition of their houses.
Officials of the state government had reportedly stormed the community with excavators during the weekend to carry out the demolition exercise.
In a joint operation with the Nigerian Police Force, Lagos Taskforce, Neighbourhood Watch, and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), several buildings were brought down to rubbles as residents evacuated their properties from the area.
According to a post shared on Instagram on Saturday, the security operatives had allegedly stormed the area around 1am, ordering the residents of the affected buildings to evacuate within five minutes.
The residents could be seen salvaging what they could as the demolition exercise commenced with properties of those who were around destroyed alongside the buildings.
In reaction, the residents on Monday stormed the Third Mainland, barricading a section of the road which had since caused massive gridlock.
As captured in a video shared on Instagram on Monday, the aggrieved victims flooded the road with placards, bringing traffic flow to a halt.
The demonstration forced some commuters to alight from their vehicles.
See video below