Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State has ordered
the immediate removal of the Divisional Police
Officer (DPO) in charge of Lafenwa, Abeokuta, CSP
Samuel Aladegoroye, by the Commissioner of
Police, Lanre Bankole.
Abiodun accused Aladegoroye of “aiding and
abetting crimes and criminality in and around his
jurisdiction, especially inside Lafenwa market and
its environs.”
The governor also ordered the arrest of all
miscreants involved in setting on fire a petrol-laden
tanker that claimed two lives on Sunday.
The governor spoke on Monday during an on-the-
spot assessment of the scene of the tanker
explosion, saying there were lots of reports against
the DPO, who he said was neither effective nor
efficient in the discharge of his statutory duties.
“There are complaints against the Divisional Police
Officer (DPO) here (in Lafenwa), I want the DPO
investigated. I also want him removed from this
place, because this is not the first time that
complaints have been lodged against him.
“We’ve gotten several complaints against him
about how he mismanages this place, particularly
as it pertains to miscreants that come and disturb
the traders. He arrests them, within five to ten
minutes, he releases them and that is why this
place has continued to be restive.
The thuggery in
this place has not been contained,” Abiodun
alleged.
The Ogun helmsman also ordered the CP to
“declare an emergency here in Lafenwa,”
threatening that he wants miscreants arrested.”
He described as totally unacceptable and criminal,
a situation where a tanker overturned and someone
willfully ignited the flowing combustible fuel in
order to loot the market.
While calling for full investigation, Abiodun urged
the CP to “ensure that everybody involved in this
heinous crime is arrested and brought to book,”
adding that “We must make an example of them.”
The Governor described the loss of lives as
unfortunate, noting that both Federal and State Fire
trucks were also damaged by the hoodlums who
also prevented fire trucks and men of Transport
Enforcement and Compliance Agency (TRACE) from
sealing off the area and protecting the tanker from
going up in flames.
He gave the Commissioner of Transportation,
Gbenga Dairo and the Commander of TRACE three
days to carry out an investigation into the
immediate cause of the accident to find out the
true cause of the incident.
The Governor, while commiserating with the traders
who lost valuables in the fire incident, directed the
commissioner for Special Duties, Femi Ogunbanwo
to take inventory of all goods lost, promising to
provide palliative for victims.
