A hit and run driver crushes LAWMA official to death, injures one

A hit-and-run driver of a jeep knocked down two highway managers of
the Lagos State Waste Management Agency on Monday along Iyana Oworo
Expressway in the state.

PUNCH learnt that although the driver managed to escape, the vehicle's
number plate fell in the process and had been handed over to security
officials.

It was gathered that the driver, who was on top speed, wanted to beat
the traffic snarl when he rammed into the victims, identified as
Lateefat Sulyman and Fatimoh Ajetunmobi.
Sulyman (popularly called Iya Tawa) was crushed to death while
Ajetunmobi was said to have been rushed to a hospital.

Punch correspondent, who arrived at the scene of the incident at about
8.50am – 20 minutes after the crash – saw security officials and other
sympathisers around the corpse of Sulyman who was in a pool of blood.
The road was also littered with debris said to have been packed by the
victims.

While men of the Federal Road Safety Corps and Lagos State Transport
Management Agency moved the corpse to a morgue, her co-workers
lamented her untimely death.

One of the workers, who declined to give her name, said Iya Tawa, an
indigene of Abeokuta in Ogun State, had promised to resign from the
job in December and set up a business, adding that she was the one
taking care of her parents.

"She was the one who took care of her parents. She told me about her
plan to leave this job by December and start her own business with the
money her husband gave her. I told her to quit immediately but she
said she wanted to wait till they moved to her husband's house. We
don't pray for this, God. This is a great loss," she said in tears.

An eyewitness, who identified himself simply as Kunle, described
Ajetunmobi's condition as critical.

"My brother, it was a terrible Monday. I work around here. There was
blood everywhere. The other woman was discharging substance from her
private parts while they were taking her to a hospital."

The LAWMA General Manager, Mr. Ola Oresanya, said the workers were
just resuming for work when the accident happened.

He said they were making efforts to track down the driver, adding that
Ajetunmobi was responding to treatment.

He said, "It happened just as they resumed for work. It was
unfortunate that we lost a worker to the accident. The other woman is
responding to treatment in the hospital.

"The number plate has been handed over to the police and we are making
efforts to ensure that the driver is arrested."