RAMPAGE AT TCIPC: Mobile Police Disperses Traders At Second Gate With Tear Gas

By Roland Ekama

There was palpable tension and anxiety at Tin Can Island Port Corridor in Lagos, as armed mobile police personnel dispersed traders at the popular second gate .

DAILYFOCUS NIGERIA on Wednesday, gathered that the armed mobile police officials successfully displaced the traders with tear gas .

The operations which started at about 7:30am, according to eye witness account in Lagos, was ongoing as at the time of filing this story (9.00am), even as the makeshift market has suddenly become a ghost town.

Shanties and goods belonging to  traders were destroyed by the operatives, while pockets of burn fires were visible within the market.

Though the port corridor was free from traffic , our correspondent confirmed tear gas smiles while passengers onboard commercial vehicles decried the harsh method of

A cross section of traders, passengers and port users expressed mixed feeling over the action by the police ; they lamented that considering the economic hardship of the country the relevant authorities should have informed the traders ahead of the action.

The traders who spoke with our correspondent on (today) lamented that they were taken unaware , while properties worth millions destroyed.

Recall that the Federal Government, the Lagos State Government, the Nigerian Ports Authority, and the security agencies rid the Apapa Ports corridor of illegal structures to boost maritime activities and dislodge criminals could be a giant step forward.

Security agents, including the police, and military, and the Lagos State Transport Management Authority, evicted squatters, and demolished the shanties that dotted and made the area an eyesore and a den of criminals. The enforcement is long overdue and should be sustained to restore the ports and its environs to their best competitive outlook and international standards.