N’Assembly asks President to shelve oil subsidy removal

Written by Segun Olaniyan and Okodili Ndili, with Agency ReportsThursday, 17 November 2011

PANIC-stricken residents of Abuja scampered for safety on Wednesday, as two fuel tankers exploded in different petrol stations, resulting in an emergency situation.
The two incidents happened in the space of two hours, with security operatives and officials of the National Emergency Agency (NEMA) rushing to the scenes to save life and property.

They were also said to ascertain whether the two incidents were pure accidents or acts of terrorism.

The first incident occurred at ASCON fuel station by Wuse, Abuja, where officials of NEMA deployed and were attending to victims. It was while this was ongoing that reports of another similar tanker explosion at an AP fuel station in another part of the city reverberated across the federal capital.

Residents feared for their lives, given the existing security situation in the country.

NEMA spokesman, Yi-shau Shuaib, confirmed both incidents and clarified that they were not bomb explosions.

He also confirmed that no life was lost in the two explosions, but that one person was seriously injured at ASCON fuel station, with two cars in addition to the two tankers destroyed in both incidents.

In another development, a bomb planted on the middle of Galadima Road in Mai-duguri, Borno State, by suspected members of the Boko Haram sect exploded in the early hours of Wednesday.

A reliable source told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on condition of anonymity that the bomb exploded when people in the area were still asleep.

The source said after the explosion, members of the Joint Task Force (JTF), who were on patrol, rushed to the scene of the incident and started shooting into the air.

The state Commissioner of Police, Mr Simeon Miden-da, confirmed the bomb explosion, adding that there was no casualty, as the blast occurred when people had not woken up from their sleep.

Midenda, however, disclosed that the rampant cases of explosion in recent times were an attempt by the Boko Haram group to establish firmly in the state capital.

Meanwhile, eight persons – a housewife, Malama Hauwa Bashir, her six daughters and a 23-year-old man – died in separate fire incidents which occurred in Katsina and Okpoko, in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State respectively.

While the fire outbreak in Katsina occurred in Rafukka quarters of the state capital, at about 9.20 p.m on Tuesday, the incident in Okpoko burnt a 23-year-old man, with over 33 houses razed as a result of children’s fire works (knockout), on Wednesday.

The deceased, whose charred remains were found at the scene of the inferno, was identified as Awa Kalu, as property worth N27.4 million was also destroyed.

Nigerian Tribune gathered that the fire incident, which engulfed a 23-room apartment, started at about 2.00 p.m, when a teenager allegedly threw explosives (knockout) into the building which consumed cash, property and other personal effects worth over N27.4 million.

The caretaker of the building, Mr  Donatus Onu, said the fire started from one of the tenant’s room and spread to other rooms, adding that before they knew about the inferno, it had gone beyond their control.

In Katsina, an eyewitness, Malam Sani Rafukka Bashir Bashir, who is the father of the children, said the incident occurred shortly after he left the house to visit a friend in the neighborhood.

Bashir, who described the incident as unfortunate, posited that the fire was caused by a bush lamp which fell on the compressor of the fridge inside her room.

It was also gathered that his wife, the late Malama Hauwa and five of the kids died on the spot, while the sixth child gave up the ghost on the way to the hospital.

Sources said the fire which destroyed property worth thousands of naira, lasted for over an hour, before the combined team of the state fire service men and neighbours put it under control.

The deceased have since been buried according to Islamic rites.

Meanwhile, the Emir of Katsina, Alhaji Abdulmu-mini Kabir, has paid a condolence visit to the bereaved family.

The member representing Ogabru 1 constituency at the Anambra State House of Assembly, Benson Nwa-wulu, who visited the scene, expressed worries over the level of damage caused by the inferno.

SOURCE: Nigerian Tribune, 17 November 2011, http://www.tribune.com.ng

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