Revnetwork has it right!
You really need to experience being shot at in Lagos before you can understand all those bullsh*t stories about being able to move about freely there without having to worry about armed robbers.
It is like a lot of things there, such as using the humble pedestrian crosswalk, just a matter of the odds. It is not that every trip into town is going to see a gun attack, just that that such an event is a known risk of life there in the "Center of Excrement."
Until it happens you get this attitude, pooh-poohing the risk of being out and about in Lagos. Right up there with that is having a local girl-friend, another aspect of life in Lagos that is there to be enjoyed if you don't think it's too risky.
Does Lufthansa still shuttle their crews over to one of the neighbour countries for their lay-overs because of the perceived risks of Lagos or have they taken this advice from our local expert at face value?