By Abimbola Ogunnaike
When Oyedotun Hammed Ayodeji, a Yoruba language teacher at the District Senior College, Meiran in Alimosho Local Government, Lagos State, left his house at I, Irepodun Street, Old Otta Road, Moshalashi, Lagos State on Wednesday, 17 December, 2025, for his place of work, he was oblivious of the danger ahead.
He hoped to come back home safe and sound later in the day to meet his wife and one-year old son.
Thus, he waved goodbye to his beloved wife, but he never knew it was the last goodbye.
It is the usual practice of the wife to prepare his breakfast and pack it in a cooler to take to school.
Since assuming duty as the Yoruba language teacher at District Senior Secondary School, Meiran, a year and half ago, Hamed has been noted for being not only a diligent teacher but also a very punctual one. Hence, he leaves home every morning early and his wife always prepares and packs his breakfast in a warm cooler.
That day, his wife prepared beans and as usual packed it in his green food flask.
That day was also a special day for him, other teachers at the school and the entire students – thegazellenews.com learnt that it was the day for the school’s end of the year activities.
Alas, Hamed never got back to his wife, son and never participated in the end-of-the-year activities. It was a sad irony that the end-of-the-year activities did not even take place as it turned to the end-of-the-year mourning for teachers and students of the school.
When Oyedotun, a Bachelor of Arts (Education) holder got to Moshalashi bus-stop holding his blue bag, he boarded a bus going to Iyana Meiran bus-stop in Alimosho Local Government Area’s end of the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway.
On alighting at the bus-stop, he boarded a tricycle popularly called Keke Marwa, seated comfortably and looking forward to events ahead when disaster struck.
Hameed was the only passenger in the tricycle, and the driver was waiting for it to be filled up before moving when disaster struck.
A Dangote Cement truck with the driver struggling to control, sweating profusely behind the wheel, rammed full weight of the truck on the tiny tricycle, three others of its type and a mini-bus popularly called Korope.
It was a pathetic end for Hameed and two others as they were crushed to death instantly, and for students and teachers of District Senior Secondary School, there ended their end-of-the-year activities.
The gazellenews.com investigation revealed that Hameed was the only passenger in the tricycle with registration number LSD 444 QN that lost his life. Two other passengers also lost their lives in two of the commercial tricycles.
Thegazellenews.com also learnt that the truck driver was coming from Sango-Ota, headed towards Iyana-Ipaja.
It was gathered that the truck apparently experienced brake failure and the driver in struggling to control the vehicle swerved into the corner of Meiran road. The truck crushed the mini-bus and four commercial tricycles, one of which the teacher was in.
When thegazellenews.com visited the late teacher’s school on Thursday, 18 December, 2025 over the sad incident, the school principal refused to give details of the disaster.
According to him, “as a civil servant, I am not authorized to make any comment on the matter. What I can tell you is that he was a teacher in this school before his death. You can get in contact with his family who will give information concerning his death.”
But a source in the school, who pleaded for anonymity, said the late teacher, “was an easy-going and very quiet person. It is very sad that the Dangote truck driver ended the life of this promising young man in his prime”.
When thegazellenews.com visited Meiran police station over the accident, a police officer on the desk said, the DPO was not around to comment on the matter. “He is the only one who has the authority to attend to you concerning the information on the accident,” the desk officer said.
At the station, the Dangote truck was seen packed beside the station, and not far away from it, were the crushed mini- bus and the four tricycles.
Besides one of the tricycles, was the late school teacher’s bag. Inside the bag was a food flask that contained the bean breakfast he was taken to school to eat before he met his untimely death. Inside the bag were pens, comb, drugs and passports of the late teacher, his wife and that of his only son.
When thegazellenews.com visited the late teacher’s house on Thursday, 18 December, 2025, it was deserted.
The late teacher’s apartment was under lock and key.
A neighbour, who simply identified himself as Mike said the wife left the house on the day the sad incident happened. He described the late teacher as a quiet person and very friendly.
According to the neighbour, he saw the late teacher at Mieran bus stop that morning.
“I saw him at the Meiran bus stop as he was moving to board a vehicle to school. He didn’t see me as I was on my way to Agege. I don’t know that it will be the last time I will see him alive. It is unfortunate that the teacher died. It is indeed very sad news,” Mike said.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with thegazellenews.com, a spokesperson of the family, Mr.Benjami Adewunmi Oyebode said, ‘’it is unfortunate that life of the young gentleman, with a promising future, was cut short by Dangote truck driver. He was a fine gentleman, easy going person. His aged parents residing in Lambe, Ogun, the late teacher’s friends, colleagues and the entire family members are saddened by this development. It is the right time the Federal Government needs to do something about truck drivers, particularly those driving Dangote trucks.
“They have been killing Nigerians, sending them to early graves with their reckless driving.
“Many families have lost their beloved ones as a result of the reckless driving of these drivers,” he said.
Oyebode also told thegazellenews.com that the family may go to court to demand justice over the matter.
“We will conclude on what we will do after the meeting of the family. We are yet to meet as we are still bereaved and mourning the death of Oyedotun.
“His death was a great loss for the entire family. The Dangote truck driver ended the life of a man, who just got married on April, 30, 2023. His bright future just ended abruptly and prematurely by the reckless action of the truck driver, very, very sad development.
“The wife has now been turned into a widow and his one year-old son is now fatherless,” Oyebode said in a sad tone.
He called on the police to ensure that the fleeing driver and the motor boy be apprehended with a view that they face full wrath of the law.
Thegazellenews.com reports that both the driver and the motor boy fled the scene of the accident using the chaos and confusion caused by the accident to escape and as at the time of writing this report, they have not been arrested.
Some Lagosians who spoke to thegazellenews.com decried accidents involving Dangote truck drivers which they said are too many.
Tragedy struck on Monday morning, 25 August, 2025, when a Dangote truck driver lost control and rammed into traders and passersby near Oko Market, close to the Onitsha Toll Gate in Asaba.
Eyewitnesses said the accident, which occurred around 11:15 am, left at least eight people dead and dozens of others injured.
According to eyewitnesses, the truck, which was speeding, veered off the road and ploughed into the crowded roadside market where trading was in full swing.
Just about a week earlier on Sunday, 17 August, 2025, three persons were reportedly killed in Auchi, Edo State, when two trucks, one belonging to Dangote Cement and another unidentified truck, and a Mercedes Benz GLK, claimed the lives of the three occupants in the Benz.
On August 13, 2025 Ruth Otabor, younger sister of Big Brother Naija Season 7 winner Ijeoma “Phyna” Otabor, lost her left leg after being hit by a truck reportedly linked to the Dangote Group near Auchi Polytechnic.
Otabor died two weeks later, precisely on August 31, 2025 just weeks after she was hit by a heavy-duty truck linked to Dangote Group near Auchi Polytechnic, Edo State.
These are just two of the recent accidents involving Dangote truck drivers in which several Nigerians have lost their lives.
Mr Micheal Adejare in an interview with thegazellenews.com on the incessant killings of Nigerians by Dangote trucks, described the incident as an avoidable tragedy.
He blamed it on the recklessness of those he described as “poorly trained truck drivers”.
“It is an avoidable death. Most of the drivers are not well trained and they are mostly overworked and stressed.
“The management of the organization should take assessment of all their drivers and their trucks that are working across the country. Trucks of that particular organisation keep claiming the lives of Nigerians.
“This organisation should put their acts together. These deaths are avoidable. It is a mess. It is not all about the government. We are all government. Giving your truck to untrained drivers is that the government? Overworking the drivers because you want to meet your target has nothing to do with the government. The government has to do their part, but citizens have to be responsible. This is one mess that should have been avoided,” he lamented.
Others who with our correspondent spoke in similar tone.
“Dangote is a good man. He has done well by employing the drivers and paying them well. The onus lies on the drivers to behave and adhere strictly to traffic rules and regulations,” Adeola Olaosebikan told our correspondent.
Mike Ukachukwu called on the management of Dangote Group to take stock of their trucks across and conduct safety assessment on them.
“Many of these trucks have mechanical problems yet the drivers won’t talk and will continue to drive them like, killing innocent Nigerians with reckless abandon,” he said.
Usman BabaKano urged Dangote to conduct drug tests on their drivers. “Some of them are usually on drugs and they drive carelessly and recklessly on the road,” he said.
