Ibadan Explosion: Report Of Forensic Investigation To be Made Public — Alake

Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake has assured that the federal government will make public the report of the forensic analysis and investigation into last Tuesday’s explosion in Bodija, Ibadan.

Precisely, Alake assured of meticulous investigation, and authentication to be followed by efficient implementation of the report on the incident.

Acknowledging public interest in the circumstances around the incident, Alake said the report was not such that the government would sit on it but would be made a public document.

Alake gave this assurance, on Monday, during a courtesy call on Governor Seyi Makinde at the Oyo Governor’s office, Ibadan.

Calling for calm pending the release of the investigative report, Alake assured that justice would be done to the perpetrators while succour would be provided to the victims.

Though he didn’t give a timeframe for the conclusion of the investigation, Alake said at the current pace, the report of the investigation will be released in no distant time.

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He said: “The governor has done a yeoman’s job. He has done very commendably in terms of speed in his response to this unfortunate incident. The president is impressed; we are all impressed.

“On our part, we would allow the investigating agencies, various intelligence agencies to conclude the forensic analysis before we make any categorical, verifiable, authentic statement on the issue.

“All the corollary issues attending this will be answered at the end of the investigation and everybody will be well informed.

“We can’t put a timeframe but at the speed they have started, it will be shorter than you think. We won’t sit on it.

“This is not the kind of report anybody will sit on. The government will not sit on any honest report or investigative analysis. It will be a public document and people will be kept abreast of it.

“We are drawing from the experience we had on a larger magnitude, in Lagos, in 2002, the Ikeja cantonment blast when our current president was governor and I was commissioner under him then.

“At that time, it was the state government that bore the brunt of it all. We are drawing from the wealth of experience in approaching all these things.

Whatever the report says. it will be meticulous, authenticated, and efficiently implemented. In the end, justice will be done, not just to the victims but to the perpetrators, culprits and whatever assistance that needs to be given to the Oyo State government, the president won’t hesitate to provide.”

Speaking, Governor Seyi Makinde called for patience saying a lot still needed to be done to conclude the ongoing investigation into the incident.

At the moment, he said forensic pathologists were continuing their investigation into the incident, while security agencies and other agencies continued to secure the site of the incident.

Makinde added that the state government deemed it imperative to extend the temporary accommodation given to victims while engineers were expanding the number of buildings to experience structural integrity tests.