THEIR ages range between 15 and 27. To them, though tribe and tongue may differ, in brotherhood they stand. But their brotherhood is unedifying, absolutely devoid of the slightest tinge of nobility. It is a brotherhood solely committed to one purpose: the evil desire to commit crime and continually spread sorrow, tears and blood all over Ajegunle community.
From the One Million and One Boys, to the One Million Boys to Lebe Boys, they now operate without a name, robbing, maiming, raping and killing on the go.
In groups of 20, 50 and sometimes up to 100, these criminals move like soldier ants, destroying all in their path. In broad daylight, they dare even death. To them, fear is nonexistent.
This is what the people of Ajeromi-Ifelodun area of Lagos go through every day. Many lives have been lost, and property worth millions of naira destroyed in weeks.
Videos of their atrocities now trend on social media, as they go about robbing innocent people, vandalising vehicles and inflicting injuries on any who dared to challenge them.
From the streets of Layinka to Aiyetoro, Kehinde, Boundary Road, Ogbewankwo, Okoya, Oduduwa, Sanusi, Bolaji, Oluwa, Tolu, Wilmer, Raliatu, Ojo Road, Babani, Ago Hausa and so on, they operate with impunity.
In the beginning
In the 1970s and 80s, various gangs held sway in Ajeromi/Ifelodun. The types of weapons they wielded were usually cutlasses, knives, broken bottles and their fists. At the time, they were known in the community as Alaye Boys. They operated at secondary school inter-house sports, dispossessing students of valuables and committing rape. Some of the gang leaders usually acted alone. Names like Mete and Ebikeme, who terrorised Old Ojo Road and Ogbewankwo, respectively, Iron Body, Angola and Small Monday held Olodi Apapa to ransom, while Yellow Obi operated everywhere. They brought a new kind of terror to the community. At the end, they were all subdued. Many of them were killed by the police.
After them came boys who were more territorial. Areas like Tolu, Alakoto, Nasamu/ Orodu, Ojo Road, and so on had gangs. They protected their streets from criminals, until some decided to go rogue and a new face of crime was born. But they were chased out of the community. Some of them started sleeping at marketplaces and in the streets. They became deadlier. However, their reign didn’t last, as their stay was cut short by members of the Odua People’s Congress (OPC) in the community.
Ajegunle today
Many believe that the present-day Ajegunle criminals are actually products of the evil past.
“The criminals of the 1970s and 80s had girlfriends, who were teenagers who ran away from home. A lot of children were born and these kids grew up not experiencing proper parental care and love. If you look at the crimes today, you cannot really pin it on anyone because they don't have residential addresses. They are, according to Fela, beasts of no nation," said a resident.
The situation is particularly distressing, according to Mr Paul, who resides on Bale Street: “What we have today are the products of the past. We have good people from this community making us proud out there. Daddy Showkey, Odion Ighalo, Oritse Femi, Baba Fyro, Lucee, a vibrant young Ajegunle girl that is taking the community higher, Prince Ogaga Wowo and a host of others that are bringing Ajegunle to the world. These are people who lived under their parents and they got the beating of their lives when they misbehaved. We have people with proper home training. Most of those who became criminals ran away from home and joined gangs. As parents, we remained silent for too long and because of this we are now suffering.
