The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni has termed as terrorist acts, the violence that followed the death of a street hawker along Maryland on Wednesday.
Mr Owoseni said this while delivering a lecture titled: ‘Youth and Terrorism’ to pupils of over 50 schools in a career guidance and counselling programme organised by the Federal ministry of information and culture with Goge Africa Foundation (GAF) at the National Theatre.
Condemning the incident, he said: “Take an example of what happened at Maryland this week. Even after one of the street hawkers had been knocked down by a vehicle, rather than people helping the security agents to quickly remove the corpse from the road, the street urchins seemed to be jubilant, going on the streets to destroy things, including BRT buses that were provided by government for the good of the people.”
Owoseni added: “We need to guide our youths who are vulnerable citizens so that they will not be used as agents of terrorism. All of us can be a change. Make the right choice when people are in distress.”
The Commissioner blamed the nation’s economic downturn, including electricity failure, unemployment, inflation, among others, to acts of terrorism.
He said: “Why do you think your mothers use the money they should use to buy you new clothes and other things to buy fuel, and some parents don’t have jobs, and we are experiencing so many economic setbacks? It is because terrorism leads to economic and infrastructural setbacks.”
Owoseni also mentioned other results of terrorism to include “violence, mindless bloodletting, death, wanton destruction, overall instilling fear in the populace and creating security crises in host communities.”
He counselled the pupils to embrace education, fear of God, parental guidance and moral values to become productive adults.
Meanwhile, co-founder of GAF, Mrs Nneka Isaac Moses said the programme was meant to build innovative and creative spirit in the children from their young age.
She advised parents to guide but not choose careers for their children rather harness and enhance their God-given dreams.
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