Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos state will on Monday, June 3rd, officially unveil the cenotaph and lay wreaths at the site of the Dana air crash to mark the first year remembrance of the ill-fated flight.
It will be recalled that over 153 passengers and crew members on board died on June 3, 2012 when the Dana Aircraft crashed into a two-storey building on 12 Olaniyi Street, Iju/Ishaga, Ifako-Ijaiye Local Council Development Area, (LCDA), killed many and left many residents in pathetic condition.
File Photo: Wreckage of Dana Airline which crashed at Iju Isaga area of Lagos.
Aside those who died on the ground, many who were lucky to escape lost their belongings which cannot be estimated.
Commissioner for Special Duties, Dr. Wale Ahmed who disclosed this yesterday, at a press briefing held in Alausa, Ikeja, on the highlights of the first year remembrance, said that Fashola is fulfilling the request of the victims’ families who demanded that the state government must construct a cenotaph and lay wreaths in honour of the deceased for the first remembrance.
Earlier in the year, the commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Ben Akabueze had during the 2013 budget analysis said that the state government would rehabilitate the network of roads linking the site of the Dana plane crash.
According to Ahmed, “Fashola will be at the site and he will be interacting with families of the deceased and commiserate with them, while prayers would also be made for the repose of the victims.”
The commissioner however noted that a lot of lessons had been learnt from the plane crash last year, saying “the state government has begun to inaugurate Local Emergency Management in all the 57 Local Governments and Local Councils Development Areas, LCDA.”
He added, “They will act as the first respondent to emergency cases, take control of the emergency sites or scenes;control the crowd because this has been the challenge facing emergency team in the state, as they respond to urgent situations.
”We advise people to always leave emergency scene for government officials who have been trained to come in for rescue operation.”Also, motorists competing with us for right of way during emergency period should desist from such,” he said.
Chairman of the Akande Community Development Association, CDA, Mr. Adewale Oriowo, who spoke to Vanguard said that the residents of the community will be holding special Muslim and Christian prayers on Friday May 31st and Sunday June 2nd, for the victims beside the crash site.
Oriowo lamented that the closest road to the cenotaph: Akande Street was left un-rehabilitated by the state government.
Oriowo said that the state government earlier in the year said that it would rehabilitate the entire networks of road linking the cenotaph, saying “why would a major Street and the closest road avoided.”
According to him, “we have asked the contractor handling the project, on why the road which was the closest road linking to the crash site was left unattended to, he didn’t give us a concrete answer.
“And on the day of the anniversary, we will present this to the state Governor, Babatunde Fashola and other dignitaries who will attend the event.”
He explained that construction of the road would complement the Olaniyi Street where the accident occurred
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