Scavengers profit as caterpillar descends on Mobil, Oando stations, Mr. Biggs Maryland

Adedayo Emmanuel

For wherever the carcass may be, there the vultures will be gathered is a Bible verse in Matthew 24:28 similar to a Yoruba adage that says at the elephant’s funeral, assorted knives are found.

The above sayings describe the scene Monday morning as caterpillar moved into the Mobil filling station in Maryland, Ikeja, Lagos to demolish the popular filling station and Mr. Biggs fast food outlet located in the Mobil station premises.

Cart pushers who deal in metal objects popularly called scavengers immediately started milling around to see what they could scavenge while some already moved some metals.

Numbering about 50, the young boys mainly from northern Nigeria were hungry looking and lusting after the metals, cables and roofing sheets.

However, while some were lucky, one of them was unlucky at the kitchen area of the demolished Mr. Biggs restaurant when men in the premises started beating him and disposessed him of metals he tried to move.

People in the premises then began to restrict movements of the scarvengers from vandalising the premises.

The excercise also affected the Oando filling station opposite Mobil which also went down.

Commuters were worried about the development as a commercial driver said he bought fuel in the station earlier.

A driver who identified himself as Julius said, “I still bought fuel here not long ago only to return to see the demolition.

However, some staffers of the filling stations were still in uniform when the stations were demolished.

“In fact you can still see some of their attendants in uniform. I don’t know what is happening,” Julius said.

An annonymous commuter said, “The premises had been marked for demolition during former Governor Ambode’s tenure because they wanted to use it for BRT terminal.”

However, the station manager was not on ground to confirm the commuter’s claim and none of the operators of the machines were ready to talk as it was ‘business’ time.

It appeared the both premises housing Oando and Mobil stations are needed for same purpose though people in the area are still baffled.

Commuters used to getting fuel at the two filling stations are however worried on how to get easy alternatives.