LASTMA Reacts To Alleged Assault Of Nigerian Musician By Female Officer In Lagos

According to a NAN report, the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority on Wednesday described as “mischievous as well as intriguing” the alleged assault of a musician by a LASTMA official.

LASTMA, in a statement by its spokesman, Mr Olumide Filade, said that the agency would continue to address all public complaints against its personnel provided such complainants were accompanied with verifiable facts.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that a yet-to-be-identified female LASTMA officer allegedly assaulted a Lagos-based musician, Lobaloba Ajanaku, for recording an incident that involved the deflation of two tyres of a vehicle.

The female LASTMA officer allegedly slapped the musician, tore his clothes and subsequently released him with the help of the police from the cell after payment of an undisclosed amount.

LASTMA, in the statement, said “Following the publication, the management of LASTMA commenced a review of the incidents narrated in the newspaper and has found some of the allegations mischievous as well as intriguing.

“The reporter claimed that Ajanaku was assaulted by an unknown female LASTMA officer despite knowledge of the practice that all officials of the traffic management authority have their names conspicuously displayed on their uniforms for easy identification.

“The management of LASTMA will continue to address all public complaints about its personnel provided the complainants present facts that are verifiable and subjected to extensive scrutiny.”

According to LASTMA, a situation in which individuals disseminate information through social media without exploring all avenues for addressing issues of purported indiscipline on the part of the agency’s officers is indecent and unacceptable.

It added that the authority would not be deterred by the activities of lawless individuals who were in the habit of misinforming the public with “scarcely credible and misleading information.”