TENDENCIA · NIGERIA · ÚLTIMOS 7 DÍAS

A heated argument appeared to break out in Lagos after a man was seen walking along the road carrying a flapping sea turtle on his head, which he later attempted to sell. The unnamed man was videoed carrying the reptile, which is a protected species, along a busy road near the Eko Hotel on Victoria Island, then resting it on top of a pile of car tyres. Video of the incident circulated on Thursday, but it is not clear when the incident occurred. According to local media reports, a foreign man who witnessed the incident, stopped and pleaded with the man and police to halt the sale. He then reportedly purchased the sea turtle to secure its release, “not to own it but to give it another chance at life”, a witness has been quoted as saying. The turtle was later placed in the back of a police vehicle and returned to the coastline. An Instagram user called Folarin, who posted a video of the incident and claimed to have witnessed it, said it “genuinely broke my heart but also restored a little of my faith in humanity”. He said the man was trying to sell the turtle in the middle of the road “as though it were just another ordinary item of trade”. Folarin explained that what happened next was both “heartbreaking and inspiring”. “A foreign man stopped, determined not to let it happen. He shouted, pleaded, and did everything he could to make the people around him, including the uniformed police officers present, understand that this was wrong. “Sadly, it seemed like his voice was the only one speaking up for a creature that couldn’t speak for itself. But he didn’t give up. Eventually, he paid the men for the turtle, not to own them, but to give them another chance at life.” Folarin said, with the help of police, the sea turtle was returned to its “natural home”, but the incident did not sit well with him: “I couldn’t help but think: What if nobody had stopped? What if nobody cared? The ocean is their home. Let them live free.” Publication, The Nigerian Lawyer, noted that the incident had raised questions about the effectiveness of wildlife-law enforcement in Nigeria, and the role of the National Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency in preventing the sale of protected species. Critics have also suggested that the incident, given the turtle was sold, would further drive the sale of protected species in Lagos.

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