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BREAKING: More bodies recovered from Ibadan blast * Makinde blames FG
Two more bodies have been recovered adding to the seven, already acknowledged by the government, bringing the number of deaths to nine, while scores of others were reportedly wounded and huge properties lost, from the scene of the massive blast that rocked Ibadan, the Oyo State Capital on Tuesday, which echoes have been reverberating across the country, metaphorically and in real terms.
Fatai Owoseni, Special Adviser to Seyi Makinde, Governor of the state, who confirmed the new casualty figure, said he was informed about the recovery of the two bodies on Thursday morning, while appearing on The Morning Show, a breakfast programme on ARISE NEWS, to speak about the incident, which saw Makinde and President Bola Tinubu, ordering prompt investigation and punishment for those found to have erred in bringing about the calamity.
It was also a day the former Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, who pushed back against the blame being heaped on security operatives in the state, for their inability to stave off the incident by discovering the activities of those said to have caused it, all but blamed the Federal Government, for its approval of mining operations in the state without taking the necessary steps to ensure the safety of the environment.
Owoseni, who argued that the police and other security agencies were not ghosts could be everywhere at a time to see the activities of human beings, but must rely on information from the people, said Makinde had not only confronted the authorities in Abuja over the issue of mining in the state, but expressed bitterness over the situation, all which came to no avail.
Confirming that the blast came from explosives stored for mining activities in the state, he said: “As of yesterday, as the governor indicated, we had three deaths and 77 wounded. But this morning, just before we started this interview, the security operatives in that area had just sent me a text to say, two more dead bodies were recovered this morning.
“Things that have to do with mining are on the exclusive legislative list in this country. That’s why people are calling for restructuring. You must give the state apparatus some obligations to monitor some of these things. Sometimes you even go to intervene and they tell you, we’ve got our license
“I can tell you that for the past two years, His Excellency, the Oyo State Governor, has been engaging the Federal Government with regards to mining. We discovered that there is an illegal mining market – gemstone market in Ibadan, around Ojo and populated by foreigners and when you go there to do an operation either as police or state apparatus, they’ll show you approval, which they have gotten from the Federal Government.
“I want to think that it is the type of engagement that Governor Seyi Makinde did with the Federal Government that even made them to divest some powers to say that international mining markets or gemstone markets would be created in four locations in Nigeria and because of the push, they gave Ibadan one of that international market. If you know the efforts the Oyo State Government has been making towards illegal mining – constant raiding, clearing of the bush. You know we have the old Oyo Park which stretches from here up to Niger State.
“If we’ve not been engaging, a lot of things would have happened in the state. The state has been putting a whole lot of efforts to get the military and other security agencies buying into our constant clearing of the forest. This is a forest that has been left from the colonial period. The Federal Government have been saying that nobody should do anything there. The forest guards are not there. “
Hours after Mohammed Hayatu-Deen did, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, on Tuesday, also flatly rejected the outcome of the presidential primaries, of the African Democratic Congress, alleging widespread voter disenfranchisement and electoral malpractice.
Amaechi former Minister of Transportation and former Governor of Rivers State, described the announced results as “concocted,” insisting that the process failed to meet the standards of transparency and fairness earlier promised by the party.
He said in a statement: “I unequivocally reject the concocted results being announced,” Amaechi stated.
He said he had previously maintained that he would only accept the outcome of the primaries if the process was free, fair and transparent, stressing that the exercise did not reflect the democratic values the ADC claimed to represent.
“I will not accept results from a process that does not reflect the values that the ADC had pledged to uphold, to rescue Nigerians from the impunity and gross mismanagement that our country is currently facing in the hands of the ruling party,” he said.
Amaechi alleged that a significant number of party members were denied the opportunity to vote during the exercise.
“There’s no way that about eighty percent of members of the party were not allowed to vote, and you expect me to accept such results,” he stated.
The former Rivers State governor questioned the moral basis of the ADC criticising the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over alleged electoral malpractice while allegedly engaging in similar conduct internally.
“A party that criticizes the ruling APC and INEC for vote buying, rigging and writing of results, cannot be engaged in vote buying, writing of results, and other electoral malpractices that leads to the disenfranchisement of voters who are party members. This is not acceptable!” he declared.
Amaechi said the ADC was envisioned as a platform to amplify the voices of ordinary Nigerians and provide credible political alternatives irrespective of ethnicity, religion or social background.
His rejection of the outcome is expected to deepen tensions within the opposition party following the conclusion of its presidential primary election.
“These timeless virtues of devotion, selflessness, and submission to divine will are values our nation desperately needs today,” were the exact words with which Godswill Akpabio, attempted to rouse Nigerians to the ethos of unquestionable faith and service to the country.
Akpabio, Chairman of the National Assembly, who drew example from Prophet Ibrahim, admonished Nigerians to emulate his unwavering faith, obedience, and willingness to sacrifice for the sake of Almighty Allah.
The Senate President, who conveyed his sentiments via a statement by Eseme Eyiboh, also used the specifically hail President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, his vice, Kashim Shettima and Muslim faithful in Nigeria and around the world as they celebrate Eid El Kabir.
Stressing that the occasion called for prayer and sober reflection on the theme of sacrifice, he added: “This sacred occasion reminds us of Prophet Ibrahim’s unwavering faith, obedience, and willingness to sacrifice for the sake of Almighty Allah.
“To our dear President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, his vice, Senator Kashim Shettima and Muslim brothers and sisters, I felicitate with them on behalf of my family, constituents and the Senate on this blessed Eid. May the lessons of sacrifice, compassion, and generosity that define this season strengthen your faith and bring peace to your homes.
“As you share with the less privileged and extend love to neighbours of all faiths, you embody the true spirit of Nigeria. To all Nigerians, I urge us to use this solemn period to pray fervently for peace, security, and prosperity in our land. Let us pray for our troops in the frontlines, for farmers to return safely to their fields, and for unity to prevail over division in our Nation.
“Eid El Kabir also calls us to deep reflection on the future of our country. Just as Prophet Ibrahim was tested, Nigeria is in a season of testing. The sacrifices we make today in patience, in tolerance and in choosing hope over despair will determine the Nigeria our children inherit.
“The Renewed Hope Agenda of this administration, supported by the National Assembly, is anchored on that same principle: that meaningful progress often requires collective sacrifice.
“May Almighty Allah accept your prayers and sacrifices. May He heal our land, guide our leaders, and bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Barka da Sallah. Eid Mubarak.”
“I will not be attending the announcement of the ADC Presidential Election Results today. I am concerned by reports from across the country of widespread vote rigging, some of which I myself observed, and will therefore be taking advice on my next steps.”
These were the exact words of Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, one of the presidential aspirants of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), with which he cast a slur on the ongoing presidential primaries of the party, hinging his position on reports of fraud trailing the exercise.
Hayatu-Deen, a second timer in the search for the nation’s number one job, ran against Atiku Abubakar, Nigeria’s former Vice President and Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, former Minister of Transportation.
In a statement on his assessment of the exercise which began on Monday, the renowned economist Chairman of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), used his X platform to convey his dissatisfaction with the process.
The ADC which said the collation for the exercise would take place in Abuja had urged aspirants, party leaders, delegates, and members to conduct themselves peacefully and uphold party unity.
Bolaji Abdullahi, its spokesman, who described the exercise as a defining moment for both the ADC and Nigerians seeking a credible political alternative, maintained that it remained committed to internal democracy and a transparent leadership selection process.
“The ADC remains proud to stand today as the only truly democratic party in Nigeria because it is the only political party whose choice of presidential candidate is determined through open primaries,” he said adding that the conduct of aspirants and party members during the exercise would reflect the leadership culture the ADC seeks to promote.
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