Twins-Faja supermarket is a popular mall located along with Lagos State University’s main campus in Ojo, Jakande housing estate at IBA with close proximity with Army cantonment Barracks at Iba LCDA. The mall has been serving the people of Iba and its environs for many years with commendable customer service and after sales service, according to reports,
This super store was on Tuesday, February 20, 2020 witnessed unprecedented invasion by men in uniform as one hefty looking man stormed the store along with a team of fierce-looking men on Nigeria Army uniform, who beat and slapped the staff of the store at random, and leaving indelible marks on the senior staffs. Customers were also seen scampering for safety, while others are moving out jittering.
According to the Close Circuit Camera, CCTV footage made available to news men. The man was seen to be talking to the female sales representative at the desk calmly. He suddenly moved to another female staff and the footage shows he was in rage. He was recorded as he kept violating the lady with slaps momentarily. He was stopped by another male staff who was equally rough-handled by the same man.
According to report, the invasion by these stern military men who came with An OP MESA Vehicle with inscription Sector-G 0038, entered the supermarket and start beating customers, members of staffs specifically the cashier after having advised a man who identified himself as a “General” in the Nigeria Army was told to follow the queue but refused because of impatience and what he resorted too was to slap the supervisor!
An eyewitness who spoke on condition of anonymity told urban Express-News correspondent that the said man drove in with a Toyota corolla ash colour with registration number IND40-fj with his wife and two children and after a while what he discovered was how people were running out scampering for safety.
Upon visiting the scene a day after to ascertain what transpired, one of the victim and staff of twins-faja supermarket whose name is Abulu Kate in an exclusive interview told news correspondent that she was attending to customers on queue only to find out that there is this particular man who was trying to jump the queue.
Upon noticing, “I had to advise that he follow the queue, only for him to start shouting at me, saying “do you know who I am? I’m a General, and you have to attend to me, this was how I decided to call my supervisor to explain to the “General” how things are done here, but rather, all that was said in other to allow see reasons fell on his deaf ears, “shouting, I must be attended too”, and in that process, he dragged our supervisor, slapped her and left angrily.
“What I discovered thereafter was the presence of Army Personnel, coming directly inside Twins-faja supermarket, beating innocent’s customers, staffs while others scamper for safety and all I did was to hide under a cupboard, avoiding those soldiers the “General” brought to invade the supermarket not to get me injured, kate said!
Assistant Manager of Twins-Faja supermarket, Mr. odewale Abbas explaining his ordeal in the hands of the military said he was refused entry into the supermarket even though he never knew what was going on from the outside, he added; stern-looking Army men bungled me inside the OP MESA Vehicle where I meet with other staffs suffering the same dilemma including a National Youth Service Corps member (NYSC) serving in Twin-faja supermarket.
“The soldiers were on the verge of taking us to an unknown destination, “there word: “we will shut down this supermarket, you haven’t seen anything yet”, you are dealing with “Nigeria Army”, this is strange, I have never experienced this kind of invasion in my life”.
Abass added that one of the soldiers collected his phone and threatened him severally, his word: “if not for God’s intervention of the solders are bent on taking them to unknown destination.
The said Corp member identified as Rasheed Ramón with Reg Number; LA19B3692 serving at Twins-faja supermarket told our correspondent that anybody sighted by those soldiers is flogged with a cable wire, he added “I was taken outside and was ordered to sit on a bare floor”, in that process I lost twenty-thousand, two hundred and fifty Naira (20,000,250).
Another staff, Kemi Babalola, who was actually in video footage indicating how she was slapped by the soldier, gave a chilling detail of how the said soldier fervently abused her. Explaining further, Kemi said the Army officer insist they must provide her to him or he will unleash more mayhem on them and twins-faja supermarket.
“sir, the normal procedure is allowing for due process to prevail which means everybody must queue” this was all that was submitted before the Army officer pounced on me, insisting he was going to shoot me, after his cause of initial action.
Kemi said other soldiers came in, in their numbers, requesting the cashier to stop work, and ask that they provide her and the other person that held the officer’s hand.
“Four of our staffs got injured, goods damaged, as customers had to drop their purchased items and scamper for safety”.
On its Network failure, Ayoku James, An ICT officer with twins-faja supermarket said the soldiers succeeded in disrupting some wiring network that severely affected food items that needs preservation which eventually took so many hours before it was fixed, damaged items running into millions.
Mr Ayoku James who is the information communication technology ICT said soldiers succeeded in disrupting some network, affecting preservative foods, other items running into millions of naira.
Urban Express correspondent got the soldier’s phone number and a call was put through to his phone but declined, however, true caller revealed his identity as Capt Mike.
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