By Izunna Okafor, Awka
Five persons, including four male students believed to be postgraduate students of the Federal University of Technology, Minna, and a woman, have been killed in a fatal road crash involving a vehicle in the convoy of the Niger State Governor, Mohammed Umaru Bago.
The accident occurred at Gidan Mangoro community along the Minna–Bida Road in Minna, the state capital, when a Toyota Hilux in the governor’s convoy reportedly collided head-on with a private Peugeot 206 car.
According to reports, the woman, identified as Mrs Nafisa, was driving the Peugeot 206, which reportedly conveyed the four students. She was said to have died instantly at the scene alongside the other occupants of the vehicle.
Nafisa was reportedly identified as a staff member of a non-governmental organisation, a programme manager at Labspace and the founder of Wosh Mart Service Limited.
A resident of Gidan Mangoro, Abdullahi Musa, who spoke with newsmen, said the crash occurred at about 11:35am on Monday while the governor and his entourage were returning from Bida, where they had paid a condolence visit to the Etsu Nupe and Chairman of the Niger State Council of Traditional Rulers, Alhaji Yahaya Abubakar, over the death of Sagi Nupe, Hajia Aisha.
The resident attributed the crash to alleged wrongful overtaking by the Hilux in the governor’s convoy, claiming that the private car was on its proper lane when the government vehicle rammed into it.
The impact of the collision reportedly left occupants of both vehicles dead and injured, with reports giving differing accounts of the circumstances surrounding the casualties.
While some reports have it that Nafisa (a female driver of the car) and the four students in the Peugeot died, some other reports identified the fifth deceased person as the driver of the government-owned Hilux, who was attached to the Niger State Government House.
The reports also identified Dauda Chikuba, the Director-General of the Government House, as one of the occupants of the Hilux. He reportedly survived the crash but was rushed to hospital for medical attention.
A staff member of Minna General Hospital, where victims of the accident were taken, said three persons died at the scene, while two others later succumbed to injuries sustained in the collision. Some of the injured victims were subsequently referred to IBB Specialist Hospital for further medical care.
The Niger State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Aishat Sa’adu, confirmed the accident, explaining that her officers arrived at the scene after the victims had already been evacuated to the hospital.
The Police Public Relations Officer of the Niger State Command, Superintendent of Police Wasiu Abiodun, also confirmed the incident, saying the police had commenced an investigation to establish the circumstances surrounding the crash.
The police spokesman, however, did not disclose the identities of the deceased or provide further details about the investigation at the time of the reports.
