Soldier Slams Sanwo-Olu, Defends Soldiers’ Right To Drive One-Way (Video)

A soldier has allegedly criticised Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu after he directed the arrest of a fellow soldier and three other motorcyclists for violating traffic rules on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway.

In a video that circulated widely on Thursday, the soldier, whose identity remains unknown, defended his colleague and disapproved of Sanwo-Olu’s use of derogatory terms like ‘useless’ to describe a soldier in the presence of civilians he referred to as ‘bastards’.

Naija News reported that Sanwo-Olu, on Tuesday, ordered the arrest of a soldier and three other motorcyclists for driving against traffic on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway.

In a video that gained widespread attention, Sanwo-Olu was seen instructing his personnel to place a motorcyclist, who claimed to be a soldier, into a vehicle to detain him.

In response to the arrest, the soldier, convinced that his colleague had committed no offence warranting apprehension, argued that the state governor lacked the authority to arrest a soldier, particularly in the vicinity of his barracks.

He claimed that no state governor controls soldiers but only their senior officers.

He said, “Did I just hear your governor calling a soldier, lance corporal useless? a lance corporal…This man broke his arm; they fired at the man. There is iron in his hands.

“You are calling a soldier useless in front of those idiots, those bastard civilians. DSS was pushing a soldier. In any situation where you find yourself as a soldier, the Army only gives you five seconds to compose yourself, so after that, you must know how to reply to any attack or anything that comes your way.

“Because he is a governor, I know he (arrested soldier) was shocked that the governor was arresting him. I know I am not perfect, and I am not saying I am, but in any situation I find myself, especially beside your barracks, nobody can arrest you. I repeat, nobody can arrest you because you have to stand your grand, and nobody will slap you there.

“No DSS or police can slap you because you refuse to go. Why will you arrest me when there are IP and military police?

“Okay, will it be because I took one way beside my barracks? What if I just took the bike out to buy something? Do I have to take the long route because I want to buy something? Who does that? In which Amy?”

Furthermore, he stated that the governor’s actions were driven by the prevailing peace in Lagos, emphasising that such an incident would never occur in the North-East, where he is stationed.

He said, “So, now, your governor has the guts to arrest and even call a soldier useless. To be sincere, Lagos has been experiencing too much peace. Let’s tell the truth, Lagos has been experiencing too much peace. Let us assume this happened in the Northeast, where I am. Is it here that the governor’s convoy that is taking one way will arrest a soldier for taking one way?

“The governor constituted a nuisance. You are there pursuing civilians; what if they get involved in an accident along the line? The governor was there acting like a tout, a governor! When you are supposed to respect yourself. If the soldier said he is not going anywhere, nobody has the power to slap him. If the governor tries it, he knows he is already a bygone. The governor dare not slap a soldier.

“If I am directed by the MP, any of my senior, or any other officer to go to the guard room, I will go. But if the governor says so, I will never go. He doesn’t have the power. Who does he want to lock up?”

Earlier, PUNCH Metro reported that the Senior Special Assistant on Media to the Governor, Wale Ajetunmobi, disclosed in videos posted on his X handle on Tuesday that unruly motorcycle riders, violating traffic rules on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, abandoned their bikes and passengers upon encountering Governor Sanwo-Olu’s convoy.

See the video below: