Residents Panic As Eiye And Aiye Cult Groups Clash In Lagos Community

There was pandemonium in Ishawo community at Ikorodu in Lagos State, on Thursday last week when rival cult groups, Eiye and Aiye, engaged in a supremacy battle. The clash, which occurred about 8.55p.m., at Olainukan bus stop, forced residents of the community to hurriedly shut their doors and remain indoors, as guns, machetes and other dangerous weapons were freely used.

Eiye cult group

After the dust had settled, Eiye group reportedly killed a member of Aiye confraternity, identified simply as Sunday.

The clashes between cult groups in Ikorodu are said to be on the increase. Several people were said to have sustained various degrees of injury while trying to escape. A resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they were in front of their house when they saw some youths, all dressed in black, chasing some people.

He said: “Because we are used to cult clashes, immediately I saw the youth in black, I called my wife who was selling bread in front of our house to pack because anything could happen. “A few minutes later, after we gone inside the house, we started hearing gunshots from different angles. On the fateful day, there was a serious commotion in the community.

“When the clash was going on nobody could come outside; everyone remained indoors for fear of being caught in the crossfire. Even some of our family members and friends who were still outside at the time of the fight we phoned them and advised not to come home. “There is no day in Ishawo without a cult-related clash, before policemen from Owutu arrived at the scene, they had fled. But the policemen evacuated one of the cult members killed during the clash.”

Another resident, who gave his name as Tayo, said nobody could say why the rival groups were fighting each other. He said: “I was at Agric bus stop when I received a phone call from my wife that I should stay where I was because cult members were fighting in our area.

“What we were battling with in the community before was oil bunkering, but we are now faced with the challenge of cultists. Policemen from Owotu Police Station cannot do it alone. We want peace in our community.”

A commercial motorcyclist, who gave his name as John, said the cultists were behaving like kings in the community, because they usually ride motorcycles without paying fares. “If we try to ask for our money, they would seize our motorcycles or threaten to kill us. We usually bail our motorcycles from them. I have paid them several times because there is no way we could avoid them; we all live in the same area. “We know them very well.

Because of their threat, some of our members have relocated from Ishawo community to other parts of Ikorodu.” It was also learnt that at Agric bus stop some Eiye members were chasing traders, motorcyclists and passers-by to go home because they wanted to engage their rival Aiye members.