THE Igbo community in Jos, Plateau State, has cried out over the alleged neglect of the victims of the May 20, 2014, twin-bomb blasts at the Jos Terminus market by the state government and other relevant agencies. The President-General of Igbo Community Association in Jos, Barr Jonah Ezekweme, while speaking to newsmen, said it lost 34 members, while 46 of its members who were injured in the blasts have been abandoned at various hospitals by the various agencies. He called on the Plateau State government, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the Chief of Defense Staff to fulfill their promise to offset the hospital bills of the victims. It will be recalled that the May 20, 2014, twin-bomb blasts at the Jos Terminus market left over 120 people dead and more than 50 people injured. Barr Ezekweme said: “We are crying to government on behalf of 46 of our members who were admitted into various hospital as a result of injury sustained from the bomb blasts. “The Plateau State governor, Jonah Jang, came to the hospitals and gave an assurance that the state government will help the victims to settle the medical bills. The Chief of Defense Staff and the Director-General of NEMA also gave the same assurance. “But after their visits, we have not seen any effort by any of them to fulfill their promises. Some of our people have been discharged. It is our association that sourced for money to offset the medical bills of these victims. “Governor Jang is the closest to us here, and so we are pleading with him to come to our aid, because many of our people are still lying in the hospital. We still have over 30 of them yet to be discharged.”
Tag: Jos blasts
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‘36 Igbo traders killed in Jos blasts’
… Boko Haram kills four soldiers
The twin bomb blasts that exploded in Jos Terminus market last week killed 36 Igbo traders.
42 others from South-east part of the country were also injured in the explosion.
The Eze Igbo Jos, Prof. Jerome Obilom, told journalist on Monday in Jos.
Prof. Obilom added that several Igbo traders are still missing since the blasts which reportedly killed over 100 people, many of whom were burnt beyond recognition.
He said, “36 of our members were killed in the May 20 explosions that rocked Jos market. 42 others were injured in the incident.
“In addition, many others are still unaccounted for while Igbo traders lost goods worth millions of naira.
“But our major problem now is the move by the state government to give mass burial to the victims without informing members of the community especially we Igbos. It is our tradition not to bury our own outside our homestead.
“Some hospital authorities were very hostile when the community led by the Chairman of the Igbo Community Association, Chief Jonah Ezekwueme, visited them to identify victims of the blasts who were of Igbo extraction.
“There is the need to compensate victims of the bomb blasts. In the past incidents, the Ndigbos were neglected and made to bear the cost of burying and rehabilitating their members alone.”
Meanwhile, unknown gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram militants have killed four soldiers attached to the Special Task Force (STF) on Jos crisis.
The soldiers were reportedly killed in an ambush by the gunmen.
The incidence took place at a remote village in Jos South local government of Plateau State called Gida-Bua. The village is over 300 kilometer away from Jos.
The Chairman of Langtang South local government area, Bendel Nancwat, who could not confirm the incident, said, “I just got the report but I have not gone there to confirm it.”
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Jos blasts’ death toll rises to 127
The Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Sidi Sani and the Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Abubakar were in Jos, Plateau State, on Wednesday for on-the-spot assessment of the twin explosions that rocked the city Tuesday afternoon.
They visited the Jos University Teaching Hospital to empathize with some of the victims who are still on admission.
The Medical Director of JUTH, Dr. Edmond Banwat, while briefing Sani and Abubakar said 48 people were brought from the scene of the explosions with various degrees of injuries.
He said 22 corpses were brought to the hospital on Wednesday.
“Two of the dead victims are children, while majority of them are women,” he said.
The NEMA Director General assured victims recuperating in the hospital of the agency’s support at this period.
Abubakar, who was also in JUTH called on Nigerians to be united against terrorism.
Meanwhile, relations and family members besieged the three hospitals hosting the victims to find family members not seen after the blast.
The three hospitals – JUTH, Bingham University Teaching Hospital (BUTH) and Plateau State specialists’ hospital were besieged by apprehensive relations on Wednesday.
They checked morgues and the wards with hope of discovering their own. Some were lucky to find the bodies of their loved ones, while many searched endlessly.
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Atiku condemns Jos blasts, seeks all-party conference
Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has condemned the Jos blasts, describing the perpetrators as the greatest enemies to peace and unity of the country.
The former vice president canvassed an all-party conference aimed at forging a united approach to dealing with the spate of insecurity in the land.
Reacting to the latest bomb blasts in Jos, which reportedly killed over 118 persons and a similar incident in Kano where about five persons were killed, Atiku said the persistent terror violence against innocent people was embarrassing and intolerable.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by his media office, Atiku advised Nigerians not to despair nor succumb to terrorists’ blackmail, aimed at paralysing the country with fear and hopelessness.
Saying the intention of the terrorists was to turn Nigerians against one another, the former vice president said terrorism is an act of deliberate provocation.
“They intend to throw Nigerians at one another’s jugular and, thereby destroying every positive gains of the country since independence and amalgamation,” the statement added.
He advised Nigerians not to play into the hands of the terrorists by allowing themselves to be provoked into fighting one another.
He called on politicians to be united in condemning terrorist attack against innocent people, adding that terrorists enjoy dividing public opinion in order to justify their atrocities.
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Jos: Relations besiege hospitals for victims
Residents on Wednesday besieged hospitals in Jos to search for their relations following Tuesday’s twin bomb blasts in the city.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that many people thronged the hospitals to locate relations who did not return home after the incident.
NAN recalls that 75 people were confirmed dead by the Plateau State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Chris Olakpe, on Wednesday.
He said the death toll was rising as some died in hospitals where they were taken for treatment.
The casualty and mortuary sections of Plateau Specialist Hospital were filled with people searching for their relations.
Mr. Chuks Ikemefuna said, “I have gone to almost all the hospitals but I have not seen my brother, Francis, who owns a shoe shop close to where the bomb exploded on Tuesday.
“I have checked the casualty wards but I didn’t see him, now I want to check the mortuaries in case he was killed,’’ he said.
Dr. Jemchang Fabong, Head, Casualty Unit, Plateau Specialist Hospital, told NAN that 52 corpses were brought to the hospital after the blast.
“38 injured persons were brought to the hospital and three of them died.
“Some of those not critically injured have been treated and discharged while those we could not handle in the casualty have been taken to the theatre,’’ he said.
A victim, Mr. John Chuwang, Deputy Public Relations Officer of Plateau Water Board, said that he was in the market to address some customers of the board.
Chuwang said that immediately he alighted from the vehicle that took him to the market, he heard a bang after which something hit his leg.
“I saw people beside and in front of me falling dead but God saved me with only this wound on my leg,’’ he said.
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Sponsors of bombings, enemies of humanity – Jang
Plateau State Governor, Jonah Jang, has described sponsors of bomb attacks in the country as “enemies of humanity and democracy.”
“The sponsors of these attacks on humanity stand condemned now and in the hereafter. We must all mobilise to check the carnage,’’ Jang said on Wednesday in a statement signed by the state Director of Press Affairs, Mr. James Mannok.
Jang, who was reacting to the twin explosions that hit Terminus Market, Jos, on Tuesday afternoon, condemned the “headless destruction of lives and property by terror elements,” and urged the security agencies to fish out the attackers.
The governor, according to the News Agency of Nigeria, advised Nigerians to see the war against terrorism as a collective challenge that must be tackled collectively.
He said that government was assessing the situation and would take prompt actions thereafter.
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Jos blasts: PDP postpones Ekiti governorship campaign flag-off
The National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has postponed, by one week, the presidential flag-off of Ekiti State governorship campaign slated for Thursday.
This is contained in a statement signed by the party`s National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Olisa Metuh, on Wednesday in Abuja.
According to the statement, the postponement is in honour of the victims of Tuesday’s explosions in Jos.
No fewer than 75 persons lost their lives to the two blasts which occurred in the central area of the city.
“Our hearts reach out to the victims and their families, and we pray that Nigerians unite as we say no to terrorism,’’ it said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that President Goodluck Jonathan was to lead PDP chieftains to Ekiti to present the party`s flag to the state governorship candidate, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, at the Oluyemi Kayode Stadium.
Ekiti governorship election is scheduled for June 21.
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Jonathan condemns Jos blasts
President Goodluck Jonathan has condemned Tuesday’s multiple blasts in Jos, Plateau State, describing perpetrators of the explosions as cruel and evil.
He also directed all relevant agencies to mobilise support and relief efforts in aid of the victims.
In a statement issued by his media aide, Dr. Reuben Abati, President Jonathan extended his heartfelt sympathies to the affected families and persons.
The President assured Nigerians that government remains fully committed to winning the war against terror, adding that this administration will not be cowed by the atrocities of “enemies of human progress and civilization.”
He also expressed Nigeria’s appreciation to the international community on the success of the recent summit on the security situation in the country, hosted by French President, Francois Hollande, in Paris.
He reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to the implementation of the resolutions reached by the summit, in addition to existing measures already being taken by the administration to combat terrorism and ensure the safety of lives.
He stated that government is prepared to strengthen existing mechanisms to ensure the immediate implementation of the resolutions of the summit, among which are:
– Every necessary measure should be taken to find the schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram militants from Government Girls’ Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State on April 14.
– Nigeria and other countries in the sub-region will continue to co-operate and co-ordinate efforts to combat the Boko Haram menace.
– The Heads of State have agreed that each country will contribute one battalion of troops to the international force set up to patrol the border areas, in line with the Resolution of the Lake Chad Basin Commission. France, United States of America and the United Kingdom will extend technical assistance to achieve this objective.
– The countries will come together to put in place an effective border management regime.
– No effort will be spared to stop the proliferation of small arms and light weapons and the supply of arms and equipment made available to terrorists.
“The President considered these measures very useful aspects of the concerted international effort to combat terrorism and put an end to the Boko Haram menace, ” the statement said.
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Update: Scores killed in Jos multiple blasts
Scores of persons have been reportedly killed in Tuesday’s multiple explosion in Jos, Plateau State.
The bombs exploded in the central areas of the city at about 2:55pm in the afternoon.
The incident happened at a densely populated areas of Ahmadu Bello Way where the city’s GSM market is located.
Loud bangs were heard in Bukuru, which is about 20km from Jos city.
A heavy explosion occurred at a populated shoe market section of Murtala Muhammed Way. Another followed 20 minutes later.
After the explosion, human bodies and parts littered the scene.
Several victims did not survive the impact of the explosions. Many of them were severely burnt.
NEMA, Red Cross and other humanitarian bodies later packed bodies and body parts of victims to the mortuary. There are more dead victims than the injured.