EXCLUSIVE: RRS Commander Arrests NEMA Spokesperson

Pandemonium erupted at the scene of the building collapse at Ebute Meta area of Lagos on Thursday, when policemen attached to the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) on the orders of their Commander, Akeem Odumosu, a Chief Superintendent of Police, arrested the Spokesperson, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), South-west, Mr. Ibrahim Farinloye.

It was gathered that the policemen had manhandled and then bundled Farinloye into one of the squad patrol vehicles, which  almost marred the rescue operation as other officials of the agency threatened to abandon the rescue operation.

RRS COMMANDER, ODUMOSU (middle)

According to eyewitness account, Farinloye had incurred the wrath of the commander by attempting to dissuade him from sending away the local rescue operators who had been of tremendous help to the rescue operation.

Odumosu had arrived whilst rescue operation and evacuation of the injured persons were on and started to pursue the local emergency workers, including the youths of the area, which caught Farinloye's attention.

He was said to have walked up to the commander and urged him to dissuade from his actions seeing that it was the same local operators who had saved the day even before NEMA and other emergency rescue operators arrived.

Eyewitness account said Farinloye's actions angered Odumosu who then ordered his men to bundle the spokesperson into a waiting vehicle and he was later detained at Denton Police Station with explicit instructions from Odumosu that he should be arraigned in court on today.

As at press time, checks revealed that the spokesperson later released from detention but it was also

 gathered that initial concerted efforts by people including  the Chairman of Lagos Mainland  Local Government, Oladele Olakanye, to effect the release of the spokesperson proved abortive as the commander had sworn to deal with him.

Olakanye was said to have even promised Odumosu that the NEMA official would write a letter of apology, a promise that was rejected by the commander who insisted that Farinloye must appear in court. Odumosu was said to have boasted,"He threatened to write a petition. Let him go and write it but he cannot send me away from here but I have sent him away."