*faceless group takes over traffic control
*Illegal placement of billboards
* breach of highway colour code
The Lagos State Government Friday asked the Federal Government to, as a matter of urgency, call to order all its agencies including the Federal Emergency Road Management Agency (FERMA) over their various illegal activities in the State which, according to the government, constitute both environmental nuisance and a danger to road users.
Addressing an inter-Ministerial Press Conference at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre Alausa, Ikeja, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Ade Ipaye, listed the activities to include taking over traffic control on highways, illegal and indiscriminate placement of bill boards and painting of road kerbs in green and white saying these activities constitute a breach of the nation’s Constitution.
The Commissioner, who was accompanied by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Aderemi Ibirogba and his Transportation counterpart, Mr. Kayode Opeifa, among others, said for the fifth time in recent times, a faceless group of men and women dressed in black uniforms had on Thursday taken over some highways in the State, aided by four armed policemen purporting to be controlling traffic, a job which is legitimately performed by the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA).
Ipaye said the State Government has lodged several complaints in the past about the activities of the faceless men.
He said on one of the occasions when a policeman was attacked by the group, the Police made some arrests adding, however, that since then the activities have continued.
The Commissioner, who noted that there was no record of any employment letter, regulations, laws or a Federal circular that pointed to the establishment of the group, said the concern of the State Government was based on the probability that criminals and hoodlums could also wear the uniform and perpetrate criminal activities under such cover.
Ipaye said the painting of road kerbs in green and white by FERMA violated internationally standardized and constitutionally recognized national road colour code of white and black or yellow and black.
He said the colour breach was first noticed in 2014 and when it was reported to the Zonal Coordinator of FERMA, the exercise was stopped.
“We are, however, shocked that against all global best practices and our National Highway code, the Federal Authorities have gone so low as to debase our National colours and to put the lives of motoring Lagos Public in danger”.
According to him, “Best practice requires two contrasting colours of White and Black or Yellow and Black. We believe that the exercise is aimed to show Federal might and to intimidate the people of Lagos State”.
Ipaye, who also spoke on the issue of illegal and indiscriminate placing of advertisements on the roads and highways in the State said these were done without regards to the laws and regulations guiding such placements in the State pointing out that placement of bill boards are “subject of regulation to ensure that the safety of the road users are not compromised”.
He explained the placement of adverts and bill boards constitutionally fell under the purview of Local Governments, who he said use the funds to augment the meagre allocation they get from the Federation Account which stands at about 20 percent for the 774 local governments in the country.
“While the Federal Government has 52 percent, local governments, 774 of them, all share just about 20 percent. This is inadequate, so they are expected to raise money from things like the advertisements we are talking about.
“So for a big government to come and say because its infrastructure is located in a particular local government, it would give advertisers a blanket permit to put whatever they like on it without liability to pay anything to the local government is a total breach of the constitution and it shows a disregard for law and order”, Ipaye said.
He explained that the State Government decided that certain major areas in the State should not have posters because the posters could come off and start flying on the road a driver could be taken by surprise and an accident could occur as a result adding, “I am saying this to illustrate the fact that there are a lot of things to be taken into consideration by the agency regulating the adverts”.
Affirming that the State stands for Law and Order, the Attorney General declared, “We think that no matter the scenario, we know that we are in the political season, but the laws are never suspended because of electioneering. The laws are still in force and it is unfair to expect that our people will subject themselves to an unknown group controlling them while using the roads or that our code for painting our road kerbs will suddenly change or that advertisement will become free for all simply because we are in a political season”.
The Commissioner commended men of the Lagos State Traffic Management Agency for their cool headedness in the face of provocation by the faceless group in black uniforms who Thursday prevented them from carrying out their duties at the Old Tollgate saying such response was in line with their training and globally recognized civilized conduct.
The Commissioner, however, pointed out that such illegal activities including the indiscriminate placement of advertisements and billboards across the State was an invitation to chaos adding that if the State’s agency in charge of adverts had gone round to enforce the law, it would have resulted in chaos.
“So we want to urge reconsideration by all the agencies concerned and to stress the importance of maintaining law and order no matter what else is going on in the Society. It is also a matter of serious concern for us and again it is a matter of law and order because if the local governments, in the name of law enforcement, begin to take down all of these bill boards, that could lead to a breakdown of law and order”, he said.
Ipaye, who dismissed any move by the State Government to be confrontational in dealing with the situation at hand pointed out that the State has always resorted to the Courts in the past to deal with such matters adding, “We do not believe in battle, that is why men of LASTMA voluntarily withdrew, that is why we do not amass a counter force”.
“We are known as the State of Law and order. In the past we have had very serious issues with the Federal Government but we went to court, where necessary we went as far as Supreme Court. Even some times when the decisions of the Supreme Court were not obeyed by the Federal Government and we kept at it, and eventually we got what was ours”, he said.
Also fielding questions on the men in black uniforms going by the tag FERMA Federal Task Force, Commissioner for Transportation, Mr. Kayode Opeifa, said a letter was written to the Federal Ministry of Works Office of the Controller in Lagos drawing the attention of the Controller who, according to him, denied any knowledge of such a body adding that the group was later dislodged.
“But going forward, the men re-appeared and the Federal Ministry of Works contacted us to assist them in evicting and we said no, that they should talk to the Police who had the authority on the issue of maintenance of Law and Order, that at that point to us, it’s a Law and Order issue, and the Federal Ministry of Works wrote a letter to the Lagos State Police Command”, Opeifa said.
The Commissioner said since the postponement of the election date, a branded mass transit bus, with the name of the Peoples Democratic Party Governorship Candidate in Lagos State boldly written on it, has been noticed in the premises of the men in black while an SUV with Bode George Boys boldly written on it also used to come to the premises.
Also fielding questions from newsmen, the Managing Director of the Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency (LASAA), Mr. George Noah, explained that the failure of any political party to secure bill boards could not be attributed to LASAA because the less than 900 bill boards being operated by private business concerns in Lagos State, were owned by business men and women who, according to him, “are free to sell their services to anyone who is interested in taking that up”.
On the action the agency intends to take over the invasion of its territory, Noah said the agency was planning to institute legal action adding, “I have here with me the draft of the summons which we are going to produce. It is important for us to do this because we need to set the records straight; the issue of Federal and State roads, the facts remain that Federal roads are not owned by any political party, Federal roads are part of our common wealth”.
Reiterating that the issue about Federal roads is a legal matter, the Managing Director declared, “I think it is important we are going to pursue this in the law court, even if we have to go as far as the Supreme Court, so that this matter is settled once and for all”, recalling that there was a similar issue about Police and Military formations when they erected bill boards on their premises without following the rules.
Also present at the occasion were the General Manager of Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Mr. Babatunde Edu, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Mr. Hakeem Bello, top government officials from the Ministries of Transportation and Justice as well as other stakeholders.