Fatai Owoseni, the Special Adviser on Security to Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, has said the explosion that rocked Ibadan, the state capital, on Tuesday was not caused by terrorists.
He said the area of the incident had been secured to ensure that hoodlums did not perpetrate crimes as a result of the explosion.
Owoseni said this during a press conference on the incident, held at the Briefing Room of the Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan on Wednesday.
He described such accounts as misinformation, saying: “We want to use this opportunity to correct misgivings. People have come out to say that Boko Haram elements have been allowed to invade Oyo State, especially Ibadan. This is incorrect.
“Some people have also said a helicopter flew over the place and dropped the bomb. That is, in its entirety, incorrect too. People have said construction sites around that place had used dynamite, and in the course of that, the incident happened. Let me say it is also not correct.
“We, from the security angle, can say that the preliminary evidence is indicative that for some time, people must have been storing explosives in that area, and it is not just fresh. It must have been something that had accumulated for some time. His Excellency has always said if you see something, you must say something.”
Makinde had said preliminary investigation revealed that the explosion was caused by explosives stored by illegal miners occupying a house in the Bodija area of the city.
As at Wednesday evening, the governor said three people had been killed and that 60 out of nearly 80 injured persons in hospitals had been discharged.
