50 Killed in Another Bloody Communal Clash in Benue

  The Nigeria Police logo

By George Okoh in Makurdi

A communal clash between Ologba and Egba communities of Agatu over a fish ponds has claimed the lives of 50 people in Benue State.

According to a source, the villagers had been fighting over a fish pond and the renewed crisis was a result of suspicion by the Egba community that the Ologba people had organised the recent deadly Fulani invasion against them where 82 people were killed in March.

The State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Hycinth Dagala, said police sources had claimed that 23 dead bodies have been confirmed while further update is being awaited.

Villagers said 50 deaths occurred in Ologba as  fighting continued. According to the People Democratic Party (PDP) Deputy Governorship Candidate John Ngbede who hails from the area, the communities in dispute had long-standing issues.

Ngbede said many people were injured following the crisis which started on Friday evening adding that they are now refugees in Ogbagaji, the headquarters of the Agatu LGA. However, the Police has said that calm has returned to the area.

Kogi Deputy Gov’s Wife, 3 Others Injured in Explosion

 Kogi State Deputy Governor, Yomi Awoniyi

By Chiemelie Ezeobi

An early morning explosion on Saturday rocked a building in Lagos belonging to the Kogi State Deputy Governor, Yomi Awoniyi, trapping his wife and three others in the rubble.

The building located on HFB Way, at no 19B Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi area of Lagos, was said to have collapsed following a sudden explosion.

When the building collapsed, the three occupants in the house, including Mrs. Awoniyi, were trapped while the driver who was outside washing cars was injured from the explosion.

According to an eyewitness report, the explosion which had come out of the blue, rocked the nearby building to its foundation and was followed by the crumbling of blocks.

Although no life was lost, THISDAY gathered that the four victims, who had sustained varying degrees of injuries, were rushed to the hospital immediately they were evacuated from the rubble.

Confirming the incident, the South-west Zonal Spokesperson, of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mr. Ibrahim Farinloye, said when the building collapsed, the first line of action was to ascertain if people were trapped underneath the rubble.

He said once that was established, emergency services swung into action and were able to evacuate the four persons trapped there.

He said, “The building collapse was suspected to have been caused by gas cooker explosion around 7:15 a.m. this (yesterday) morning. The explosion and subsequent building collapse affected three occupants, who were inside the building at the time, and the driver who washing the car outside. “Although no life was lost, the four injured persons have since been evacuated to St. Maria Hospital, Yaba, for proper treatment. Currently, the Police Anti-Bomb Squad and Police Disaster Management Unit are working on the site to get to the root of the explosion.

“Afterwards, the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) will move in to determine the next level of action to take”, he added. In an another development, a nine-seater bus conveying passengers from the Lagos Island to the Mainland also went up in flames yesterday. The bus was said to have exploded at the Costain area, bordering between the Island and Mainland axis, and burnt its passengers.

Although all the passengers were rescued alive with varying degrees of burns, one of them was said to have given up the ghost on the way to the hospital.