Checks revealed that Christianah had to shuttle between MAPOLY in Abeokuta and Ago Iwoye to finally have her OND project approved. In the course of this sacrifice for academic pursuit, some courses which she should have sat for in the 100 level class were missed.Therefore, the need arose for her to re-sit these papers between June 23-26.
The 23 year old, described as “focused, intelligent and friendly” according to a close friend and teacher, Yemmy Dalemo , had just sat for the last required paper on the fateful day, before she and seven others fell to the cold hands of death .
According to Dalemo, Christianah showed every determination, “as if she knew that she had a very short time to live. Immediately after her OND she wanted to seek admission at the University of Lagos (UNILAG) to study law , but, I encouraged her to come down to OSU and I gave her all the necessary support to secure the direct entry until the fateful day, when I got the news of her death.”
She and five other 100 level students had just completed their exams on Friday and were heading back to their various destinations in Lagos, when tragedy struck a commercial bus they had boarded, which had taken off from the Ago Iwoye park.
According to reports at the scene of the accident, which occurred along the Sagamu-Benin expressway, an unlatched 20-feet container fell off a moving truck as the driver tried to avoid an obstruction while driving against the direction of traffic.
The container with a Lagos registration number BDG 779 XE was said to have fallen on the roof of the Toyota Hiace bus also with a Lagos registration number XV 311 MUS, a few metres away from the gate of a plastic manufacturing company near Ilisha Remo junction.
The Ijebu-Ode Commander of the Ogun State Traffic Management and Compliance Agency (TRACE), Tommy Hamzat, who broke the news, said that the driver of the container laden truck drove against the traffic.
He said: “I was coming from the Sagamu end when I saw the accident and hurriedly parked my car. I ran there to see if the passengers could be rescued, but, unfortunately, all the occupants, were dead, including the driver. The bus was facing Lagos, though I don’t know where it was coming from. The truck carrying the container was coming from Sagamu ,but was driving against the traffic and that resulted in the collision which claimed the lives of the innocent students.”
However, the TRACE Commander in Sagamu, Kehinde Arode in an update said that one person survived, but was badly injured.
The news spread fast to the University campus and grief, mourning and tears followed .
The Chairman, National Association of Nigerian Students,NANS,Ogun state, Comrade Okikiola Ogunsola, listed the victims to include, Odubanjo Eunice ( Pol. Science 200 level), Ogunnoiki Omolade Mariam EFM (History100 level), Aribiola Yetunde Elizabeth (Biochemistry 100 level), Adams Suliat Oluwatobi (Accounting, 100 level), Pampam Funmilayo Latifat (Chemical Science 100 level) Asade Christianah Ibukun (Law 200 level), Dairo, Olatunji (Physics) 400 level. He said the students were identified through their voters cards, receipts, driver licenses, school IDs and text books.
There were four other identification cards (ID cards) seen around the accident scene belonging to Kutu Ayonimofe Emmanuel, Ayoola Sheriff Gbolahan, Akinyemi Remilekun and Akeem Kazeem. The student leader said he was not sure whether they were the correct identities for the remaining occupants of the bus.
By the evening of the day, three affected parents and relations had visited the morgue to retrieve their deceased, including the driver of the bus,who was identified as Lukman Ola Adekeye. The two others Olatunji and a freshman, identified as Aminat Adebayo, who had gone to the school to complete her Post Jamb form in the school and was on her way back home, were taken away for burial.
The only survivor, Akinbo Laughter Ibukun, a Chemistry student, who is still receiving treatment at the Babcock University Hospital, in Ilishan, was located by the student leaders.
The duo of Adegbesan Adenola, President and Adelusi Damilola, PRO, respectively , said the lone survivor is getting adequate care at the Babcock Hospital.
The Students Union Government after a meeting Saturday evening with the NANS southwest zonal coordinator, Comrade Sunday Ashefun and Ogunsola, decided that Monday, June 29 be declared as a ‘Black Monday’ in the school. It was also agreed that the day will be lecture-free.
“We will be having a candle night procession for our deceased colleagues on Monday night.We are expecting all students to come from other tertiary institutions across the state, as they have shown interest to join us in the ceremony ”, one of the OOU SUG executive members who was at the meeting which lasted till 8:25pm, said.
However trouble loomed when the remains of the four dead students could not be retrieved at the private morgue at Fakoya Hospital, Sagamu area. It was gathered that the hospital was demanding N20,000 for each of the deceased before releasing them .
Adenola in a social media post admitted that they forcefully retrieved the dead bodies of their colleagues, who were involved in a road crash last week.
“Yes, we forcefully visited the morgue, when they were asking for N20,000 each. It is irrational that such demand would be made when our future leaders were killed due to no fault of theirs.”
Subsequently, the students got an official ambulance and recovered the victims without paying, and moved the bodies to the morbid anatomy unit of the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH) Sagamu.
Barely 48 hours after the Ogun State government, led by the deputy governor, Mrs. Yetunde Onanuga and Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Barr. Taiwo Adeoluwa had visited the only survivor, Ibukun, at Babcock University Hospital, in Ilishan. The deputy governor thanked God for her life, while prayers were offered for the dead.
On Monday, the students, joined by other students from sister institutions, staged a rally to honour their colleagues, a development that stalled traffic along the ever-busy road.
The students, Achefon among others held the rally at the spot where the accident occurred. As early as 7.00am the students started to arrive, and the group began to stretch several meters away from the scene.
Achefon said the death of the students was regrettable even as he urged government at all levels to be more proactive in giving commuters protection on the country’s roads.
Traffic flow was halted on both lanes of the dual carriage way, as travellers were forced to make a detour to avoid the anger of the grieving students who arrived the scene of the accident in four buses.
For over 45 minutes, they wailed and offered prayers for the peaceful repose of the souls of the 12 students who were crushed to death.
They later marched to the premises of a plastic manufacturing company located few metres away from the scene of the accident and vandalised 13 trucks parked there .
The company is suspected to own the container which fell on the affected students when the driver of the truck drove against traffic and had a head on collision with their bus.
Policemen, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and officials of the Ogun State’s traffic agency, TRACE, made frantic efforts to divert the traffic to safe routes to avoid violent confrontations from the students.
The students, commonly referred to as “Osuites” forced their way into the factory, with different placards which bore inscriptions such as “We Demand Justice for the Lost Souls,” OOU Mourns, OOU Weeps, OOU Cries,” “A Future Lawyer is Gone!,” “Fresh Graduate Gone!,” “We’ve Lost Our Scientists,” “OOUITES Are Not Chickens. Stop Giving us Phobia,” “Police, FRSC, TRACE Must Be Probed.
Adenola , who addressed newsmen, said they are demanding immediate payment of N120 million naira compensation – N10millon for each of the dead students. He warned that should the company fail to pay the said amount to each family of the victims within seven days, they would return to the factory.
And in what appeared to be government’s official reaction, state governor, Sen. Ibikunle Amosun disclosed that his administration would introduce domestication of traffic laws in order to bring erring motorists to justice.
The governor, who made this known recently, when he visited the scene , lamented that lawlessness on the highways which has pervaded the nation is more pronounced in Ogun, because the expressways predominantly lie within its corridors, noting the state would look into the Federal highway code as a tool and work on making it more potent to criminalize traffic offences.
He said the government in the state would continue to empower traffic and security agents for optimal performance. “The lawlessness on the highways which has pervaded our nation is more pronounced in this state, because the expressways predominantly lie within our corridor. We feel this lawlessness everyday. A sane mind does not need to be told to desist from driving against the traffic.
“We need the capacity to address this menace. We will look into the Federal highway code and domesticate it.We will even make it more potent and endeavour to criminalize traffic offences.
Besides, our problem is not the law but rather its enforcement.This is the reason why we will not relent in supporting our traffic and security agencies for better performance,”he said.
While commiserating with the families of the deceased and the university community, Amosun advised OOU students to avoid taking laws into their hands,assuring that the government was making effort to get the driver arrested.
He also visited Ibukun at the BABCOCK hospital.
Formal academic activities have since resumed at the institution, with prayers for the departed souls.
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