The dangerous roads to Zhidu community
Residents dread Zhidu roads at night not only because of its deplorable nature but mainly due to the alleged rampant robberies on it.
Some of the residents who spoke with our reporters said several people have been attacked by armed robbers on the roads, losing their motorcycles, vehicles and valuables in most cases.
They said the robbers hide under the cover of the night to unleash a reign of terror on their victims, alleging that some unfortunate ones have been killed by the yet to be identified robbers.
Some of the residents, especially people that reside in estates within the area, said they either don’t go home at all or park their vehicles in neighbouring communities once it gets dark.
Two roads lead to the community, one from Tudun Wada, Lugbe, and another from Piwoyi, but both are allegedly infested with robbers.
A resident, Emmanuel Mue, said there have been unending cases of armed robbery on the road.
He said once it is 6:00p.m. people dread the road.
“If you waved a commercial motorcyclist to take you to this estate or Zhidu, your name na sorry,” he concluded in Pidgin English, which means the cyclists would decline.
Mue said the robbers mostly unleash terror between 6:00p.m. and 4:00a.m.
“One of our neighbours was attacked the day he moved in. It was the robbers that did welcoming ceremony for him, to tell you that the situation is serious,” he said.
He added that another resident had to pack out of the estate after armed robbers attacked him and injured his wife.
One of the victims, Gideon Danjuma, a member of a vigilante group in Tudun Wada said he was attacked while returning to the community after a patrol at midnight.
“We were returning to Tudun Wada at about 3:00a.m. when we were attacked. They used their flash lights on us, ordering us to stop and when they discovered that we were vigilantes, they collected our sticks and flash lights and told us to keep running,” he said.
Danjuma said the hoodlums, whom he said were armed with guns and cutlasses, collected his identity card and warned them to vigilantes.
While Danjuma escaped unscathed, Monday Michael was not so lucky. Michael, a guard with a private firm, was also attacked on the Tudun Wada road when he was riding on his motorcycle while returning home at about 7:00p.m.
He said the robbers were divided into three groups and strategically positioned at a bend on the road when he was attacked.
He escaped the first and second group but a stick thrown by the third group caught him on the leg.
“I fell and when I saw them running towards me, I left the motorcycle and fled,” he said.
He said though he was yet to recover from the loss, he was grateful for his life and since then, he ensures he gets home before nightfall. stop working as
The Piwoyi route has not been better. A resident who pleaded anonymity said he was attacked along the road three days after he moved into an estate in the area.
“I was driving home on the Piwoyi road at about 8:00p.m. when I was attacked. The armed robbers suddenly emerged from the bush and started shooting at my vehicle,” he said.
The man said he was terrified by the shooting that shattered his vehicle’s rear windscreen but was composed enough not to stop despite the several shots at his vehicle.
“I picked about seven bullet pellets from my vehicle the next day,” he said.
He said it was his first baptism of gunshots in the community, one he would live to remember.
He said the Piwoyi road was more notorious, adding that there have been more than two cases after he was attacked two months ago.
“Another person was attacked and shot in June on Piwoyi road while more than six motorcycles were snatched along the Tudun Wada route last week,” he said.
While the residents were concerned about the security threats, Solomon Ayuba said criminal cases on the road would have been minimal if the road to the community around the Abuja Trade Fair was not closed.
He said the residents now travel a long distance to Piwoyi before reaching the community.
Ayuba said deplorable portions in the road also aid crimes as motorists would have to slow down and negotiate several bad portions before getting to the community.
“Okada snatching is a common phenomenon on the road,” he said. Ayuba said the rate of crimes would have been reduced had there been a police station in the community. While several appeals to the government for a police outpost was futile, he said the community took the initiative of building one and it has remained uncompleted for more than two years.
When completed, he said, the building, near a Catholic church, would help in checking crimes on the road and also in the community.
“Our vigilante is not functional anymore because the people do not pay their dues,” he said.
He said it takes not more than 15 minutes to get to the community from Piwoyi but it costs more than N150.
Ayuba appealed to the government to intensify effort in ensuring the safety of the residents.
The Divisional Police Officer at the Lugbe Police Station was not available for comments but police sources identified shortage of manpower and other resources among factors affecting the constant patrol of the area.