Unmask illegal miners behind Ibadan explosion, Sowore tells Makinde

The 2023 presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has asked the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, and security agencies to answer nagging questions about the explosion that rocked Ibadan late Tuesday evening.

According to Sowore Governor Seyi Makinde, and security agencies have to answer questions concerning the alleged illegal miners responsible for the deadly explosion.

PUNCH online reported that Makinde issued a statement stating that the explosion was caused by illegal miners.

Sowore, however, in a series of tweets he shared on his X handle (Formerly Twitter) on Wednesday wondered who the miners were, what they were mining, and why are they in possession of such powerful explosives.

His tweets titled, Posers For The Governor Of Oyo State #seyimakinde And Security Agencies Regarding The Deadly #IbadanBlast Last Night, read, “Even in developed countries, it takes nothing less than 48 hours before government agencies make a categorical statement about such a massive explosion. These include cordoning off the area, obtaining evidence on the scene, and analyzing it before telling the public what exactly happened.

“In less than 10 hours, Governor @seyimakinde already “investigated” the incident and submitted it was “Illegal Miners.” Who are the illegal miners? What do they mine, and why are they in possession of such powerful explosives?

“Is there any explosives dealer known to security agencies in a high-brow neighborhood in Ibadan that the govt had long been aware of and did nothing about?

“Again, who is that miner? What is the miner’s name, and what do they mine in Oyo state? Is it gold, silver, cobalt, uranium, or what? A release should be done immediately to reveal the identity of the miner!

“Mining and using explosives has a procedure and rarely explodes without a trigger, especially dynamite. You have to ignite it automatedly or use fire. Was the building rigged with explosives? If so, why so?

“Is the governor or Oyo state government aware of mining in the Agodi residential area? Is the governor aware of it, or is his or the state carrying out rock blasting in a residential area?

“The DSS is saddled with approving the use of explosives around Nigeria. What is their public position on what happened? At least citizens need a preliminary report from the DSS on this matter immediately.”

On Tuesday night, panic gripped Ibadan residents over an explosion that occurred at Dejo Oyelese Street in the Bodija area of the city.

Meanwhile, the National Emergency Management Agency has disclosed that over 20 houses were affected in the Tuesday night explosion.

“Over 20 houses were affected. Casualty figures can not be ascertained for now. Search and rescue operation is still ongoing,” the agency said.