Governor Seyi Makinde disclosed on Wednesday that the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) certificate of a mining company implicated in Tuesday’s explosion in the Bodija area of Oyo State revealed the presence of foreign names as owners.
Makinde, a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today program, also reported that the death toll from the tragic blast had increased to three, with one more victim succumbing to injuries in the hospital today.
“We recovered one individual alive on Wednesday under the rubble. 60 of the 77 people hospitalized have been discharged,” the governor stated.
“We are trying to uncover the identities of the people. We’ve done a few fact-finding on the company involved, and yes, there are indeed some foreign names on the CAC documents of the company involved, but these are still early days. We don’t have anything to cover,” he explained.
Makinde identified an individual of interest that security agents should be inviting for questioning and clarified that the incident was unrelated to banditry and insurgency but involved illegal miners storing explosives in a residential area.
He assured the state government had no reason for a cover-up and urged the people of the state to trust his administration.
Makinde mentioned his intention to seek presidential approval for miners to store explosives with the military and indicated that he would sign an executive order to that effect in the coming days.
The governor added that those whose houses were destroyed had been provided temporary shelter in hotels in Bodija and in the Agodi areas of the state capital.
Explosion Incident Overview
Panic ensued in Ibadan on Tuesday evening as a loud explosion rocked the ancient city, causing buildings to collapse due to terrific vibrations.
Residents reported that houses and cars far from the explosion scene were impacted by the blast wave.
“We heard a loud bang around 07:30 pm. Dominos shattered, Ace Mall in Bodija destroyed,” a panic-stricken resident conveyed over the phone.
Victims were promptly rushed to hospitals, while some residents found themselves trapped in the rubble of buildings that collapsed due to the impact of the blast.
Governor Makinde, who visited the scene on Tuesday night, stated that preliminary investigations by security agencies revealed that the blast resulted from illegal miners occupying one of the houses in Bodija. The explosion occurred at Adeyi Avenue, Bodija, with the vibration felt in various parts of the city.
Ongoing investigations aim to hold accountable all individuals found responsible for the incident.
Ada Peter
