Lagos: The Lagos State Government has dismantled illegal checkpoints along the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, with the aim to improve vehicular movement and road safety. The State Commissioner for Home Affairs, Alhaji Ibrahim Layode, on Monday led a coordinated team with top security officials to carry out the exercise.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the operation followed a high-level meeting between the commissioner and commanding officers from two Nigerian Army formations, as well as representatives of the Nigeria Police Force. The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and a delegate from the Akran of Badagry were also present at the meeting.
During the exercise, three customs checkpoints at Mowo identified as unauthorised were dismantled with the cooperation of the Deputy Comptroller of Customs in charge of Enforcement, Seme Area Command. Several motorists were apprehended or cautioned for violating traffic regulations, including driving against traffic flow and reckless speeding-behaviours that have contributed to recent road accidents along the expressway.
At the Gbaji checkpoint, Layode instructed officers to reduce the area occupied by security personnel to facilitate the smoother movement of vehicles and goods. Addressing journalists, the commissioner emphasised that the initiative was part of broader efforts to address the proliferation of illegal checkpoints, which posed both logistic and safety risks to road users.
The commissioner highlighted troubling allegations that certain checkpoints were contributing to traffic congestion and, in some cases, fatal accidents. He referenced a tragic crash that recently occurred within Badagry, claiming multiple lives, and suggested that an unauthorised checkpoint in that area may have played a role. Layode noted that the State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, had expressed concerns over the frequency of accidents on the Badagry axis and had directed prompt action.
In response, consultations were held with commanders of the 243 Battalion and 15 Engineer Regiment of the Nigerian Army, the Seme Border Patrol Unit of the Nigeria Police Force, Commander Area K, and Divisional Police Officers of Badagry and Morogbo. All stakeholders assured their commitment to the governor’s directive, pledging support for the removal of all unauthorised checkpoints, and agreed to restructure operations at approved checkpoints to minimise congestion and ensure smoother traffic flow.
The commissioner commended the officials for their cooperation and promised to update the governor on the decision reached to ensure sanity on the Lagos-Badagry expressway. Furthermore, the report highlighted that on May 8, President Bola Tinubu launched a Presidential Task Force to eliminate multiple checkpoints hampering the free movement of people and goods across key transport corridors. Ambassador Musa Nuhu, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to ECOWAS, announced the initiative during a visit to the Nigeria-Benin Republic border in Seme.
