No less than three Nigerian school principals and some others have been reported to have died in an accident in Oyo State.
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According to a report by Punch Metro, the members of the National
Union of Teachers in Oyo State are mourning the death of three
principals and an accountant in the state public secondary schools in a
road crash.
No fewer than seven persons, who suffered varying degrees of injury, have also been hospitalised.
Punch Metro reports that the victims were involved in the accident along the Oyo-Ogbomosho road around 5pm on Wednesday.
They were said to have attended a seminar organised by the state
government in Oyo town and were returning to their respective
destinations in Ogbomoso when a tanker rammed into a bus they were in.
It was learnt that the tanker driver veered onto the bus lane in an attempt to dodge a pothole but crashed into the bus.
The three principals, an account clerk, and the bus driver, whose
identities had yet to be ascertained, died on the spot, while seven
others who were injured, were rushed to the Bowen University Teaching
Hospital, Ogbomoso.
“Five persons, including three principals, an account clerk in
one of the public secondary schools and the bus driver, died in the
accident.
“I learnt that one of the deceased principals, Mr. Ogunremi,
was supposed to retire in a few weeks’ time. They were returning from a
workshop in Oyo town,” a source said.
The Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress in the state, Waheed
Olojede, who is also the secretary of the state chapter of the National
Union of Teachers, confirmed the fatalities, adding that five others
were critically injured.
He blamed the Oyo State Ministry of Education for directing 340
participants from schools in Ogbomoso to travel to Oyo town for the
workshop, saying a centre should have been created in Ogbomoso
considering the large number.
He said, “The entire labour movement under the aegis of the
Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress and Joint Negotiating
Council, led by Emmanuel Ogundiran and me, have visited the injured
victims and families of the deceased.
“The NUT in the state received the news with rude shock. The
NUT and labour movement are worried and disturbed about the wrong
decision taken by the education ministry to compel 340 participants from
85 secondary schools in Ogbomoso to attend a workshop in Oyo town when
simple reason and logic is supposed to have guided the ministry’s
decision to create a centre in Ogbomoso for the workshop while the
facilitators move there.
“Labour advises that the ministry and other government agencies
should always consider the number of participants as a key factor in
determining the venue for future workshops.”
The Oyo State Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology,
Prof Adeniyi Olowofela, told one of our correspondents that he led a
delegation to the Bowen University Teaching Hospital and families of the
victims as directed by the state Governor, Abiola Ajimobi.
“We are just coming back from Ogbomoso. The governor directed
that I should lead a delegation that included the chairman of the state
Teaching Service Commission to commiserate with the families of the
victims. The state government regrets this unfortunate incident and will
defray the hospital bills of those who are still receiving treatment,” he said.
The Oyo State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps,
Cecilia Alao, confirmed the crash to one of our correspondents in a text
message.
She stated that the accident resulted from dangerous overtaking and
urged motorists to be safety conscious and comply with traffic
regulations at all times.
Alao said, “A fatal road crash occurred on Wednesday, January
24, 2018 along Oyo-Ogbomosho Road at 4.30pm. Two vehicles – Mazda E2000
bus, with number plate, XE 455 PFA, and an Iveco tanker with number
plate, LKJ 790 XU, were involved in the crash which occurred as a result
of dangerous overtaking.
“A total of 15 passengers (11 male adults and four female
adults) were involved in the crash, while three male adults lost their
lives. A total of 12 passengers (eight male adults and four female
adults) were rescued alive and taken to the Bowen University Teaching
Hospital for medical attention.”
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