Children swim in bar beach despite warning signs

Hundreds of fun- seekers on Thursday besieged the Bar Beach on Victoria Island, Lagos, in celebration of the Eid-el-Fitri as beach guards had a hectic day chasing away the children, who were swimming.


The gaily-dressed fun-seekers, including children accompanied by their parents, massed at the beach in spite of warning signs pasted by construction companies dredging the beach.

Some of the signs read in part: “No picnic, no hawking, no loitering, no playing of football, no recreational activities.’’

Mrs Titi Sule, a mother of three, told reporters that the choice of the beach was to enable her children to savour the Eid-el-Fitri festival at the resort.

“We are here to have fun and relax. My children want to ride horse and that is why I brought them here.’’

Another reveller, Mr Mohammed Umuru, who came with his friends, described the beach as a resort to behold.

A beach guard in uniform, Mr Ayo Ajala, said restricting children and other fun-seekers at the beach was hectic.

“We are here to monitor the beach and prevent people from going to restricted areas. We are also to prevent children and adults from drowning.

“The warning signs are there because of the ongoing dredging exercise; some areas of the sea are dangerous, but the fun-seekers do not know, so we are here to monitor them.

“For instance, during the last festive period, we rescued three children from drowning,’’he also told NAN.

At the National Theatre, Iganmu, hundreds of children were seen playing in groups, while some adults were in the queue to buy tickets to watch films.

Meanwhile, intra-city transport fares did not increase across the metropolis.

NAN also reports that only few passengers, who were travelling out Lagos, were at the motor parks.

An official of the National Union Road Transport Workers (NURTW) at Iyana-Ipaja, Mr Kareem Lukmon, attributed the low patronage to the festival.

“We did not raise bus fares because many people are not travelling out of the state for the festival unlike during the previous festivals.

“There is no rush this year, market is very dull, “ he said.