Hoodlums attack Igbo traders in Lagos for allegedly voting Atiku against Buhari

Hundred of social miscreants, popularly known as ‘Area Boys’ have attacked Igbo traders on Lagos Island for not voting for President Muhammadu Buhari in the last Saturday election.

The miscreants, who were armed with dangerous weapons like cutlasses, broken bottles, wood and knives struck at about 9.am at Oluwole, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Tinubu, Bamgbose and Alli Streets.

Some Igbo traders who were just opening their respectful shops for business were beaten with the instruction that all their shops should remain locked.

Armed hoodlums were seen parading the Streets, shouting “Igbo should go back to their States to do business. This is Lagos.”

“We campaign for them to vote for Buhari, but they refused and voted for Atiku. They cannot come here to do business again. They must follow us to vote whoever we ask them to vote for. This is just a sample for them if they ever vote for PDP again, that will be their end”, the hoodlums threatened.

This threats made the Igbo traders to quickly close their respectful shops and stood nearby to witness what was going to happen to their shops.

Some Yoruba men in the areas were also seen challenging the hoodlums not to cause a problem because the Igbos have the right to vote for the candidate of their choice.

Chris Onyekachi, President, Amalgamated Computer Stationery and Allied Trader Association of Nigeria, said he got a call this morning that hoodlums had attacked Igbo traders on Lagos Island because they voted for Atiku Abubakar.

He said the hoodlums locked their shops and destroyed goods worth millions of naira and even beat up some Igbo traders for daring to vote for Atiku.

Onyekachi condemned the act, describing it as lawlessness, saying that it was a breach of their fundamental human rights as they had the right to live anywhere and vote for whom they chose to vote for.

He added that the arrival of the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, in the area saved the day as the police restored normalcy.

Also, policemen were drafted to the areas on the order of the Area ‘A’ Commander, Bode Ojajuni who was informed about the situation.

As at the time of this report, Police vehicles were seen patrolling the areas, but the Igbo traders still gathered nearby and refused to open shops for the fear of another attack.