Members of the Bodija Estate Residents Association (BERA) and victims of the January 16, 2024, explosion have lamented government negligence, denying they received any money from the state government.
The explosion claimed five lives and destroyed over 77 buildings on Adeyi Avenue, Bodija, Ibadan, Oyo State.The victims and the Chairman of BERA, Pastor Muyiwa Bamgbose, disclosed during a community meeting at Oba Olagbegi Street, Old Bodija, Ibadan, that members have yet to receive any form of government assistance.
“We are complaining because some paid N4 million to rent a house, others N9 million, while some could not afford to rent a house and are squatting at old age,” Bamgbose said.
“I was on the committee, and we submitted our report about three months ago; that was the middle of February 26, 2025. Afterwards, nothing has been heard about the committee report.
“We are begging the government because we are powerless. There is no election around the corner. People need some help. Let us have something for now that we can live with.”
Corroborating, another resident and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Dipo Olasope, said that when he was interviewed on a radio programme around February 26, 2025, about the plight of the victims, he complained bitterly that people had not been paid.
According to him, the Commissioner for Information, Prince Dotun Oyelade, who was also on the programme, promised that they would be paid within two weeks, but to date, no money has been disbursed.
On her part, Mrs Gloria Olanipekun said, “Nothing has been heard about it so far.”
Reacting, the Deputy Governor, Adebayo Lawal, who headed the committee, stated that considerations for payment had reached an advanced stage, in line with the recommendations made by the committee set up to look into the matter.
Lawal assured them that Governor Seyi Makinde’s administration would soon conclude all modalities to provide succour to the victims.
“The committee, which I chaired, recommended N4.83 billion. We have submitted the report to the governor, and he has accepted it. But the amount was not budgeted for. We can’t just dip our hands into the account to withdraw money. I know how the government runs.
“It behooves us to look at the legal and financial implications of the amount. The governor is not reducing it by a kobo. We are doing this on compassionate grounds. But it has to be well appropriated. We are trying to do it in accordance with the law,” Lawal explained.
The deputy governor also recalled that the state government had done much for the victims.
“No one expected an explosion of that magnitude.
The government has done a lot for the victims. They stayed in hotels for about a year. We are repairing all the roads in the area. We feel obligated to come to the rescue of the victims,” he said. Lawal urged the victims not to blackmail a compassionate government that is ready to provide them with succour.
Guardian
