NEWS
Facts/Figures: Abuja building collapse: 2 dead, 5 rescued
Two persons were feared dead on Friday, while five were rescued from rubble after a storey building collapsed in Kubwa Satellite town in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the building, which was under construction at Hamza Abdullahi Street Off Gado Nasco Road, equally housed a shopping mall.
NAN also reports that the rescued operation was carried out by a combined team of the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council and Federal Roads Maintenance Agency.
Also among the rescued team were the Federal Road Safety Corps, the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and others.
One of the residents, Mrs Chinyere Okah, who spoke with NAN, confirmed that the building which was being converted from a shopping mall to a residential apartment collapsed on Thursday night at about 10:30 p.m.
The Director-General, FCT Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Alhaji Abbas Idriss, confirmed that two persons lost their lives in the incident, while the trapped persons had been rescued.
Abbas explained that the agency received a distress call about the incident at 11.45 pm on Thursday evening and thereafter activated its stakeholders to the scene.
He revealed that five persons were rescued and taken to Kubwa District Hospital, noting that two of the patients had since been discharged.
“As a follow up to the developing story of the collapsed building at Kubwa, a suburb in the FCT, the two trapped persons in the rubble have been rescued fatally injured.
“The bodies of the two persons that lost their lives have been deposited at the Kubwa District Hospital mortuary. Their relatives have been identified and were making arrangements for their burial.
“The rescue operation at the collapsed site came to an end with five number of persons rescued alive, three with various degrees of injuries , while two persons were unhurt and discharged from the Kubwa District Hospital,” he said.
He commended all the stakeholders for their prompt response and cooperation, including construction companies which is line with their corporate social responsibilities mobilised and deployed all their resources to saving live.
He also lauded the Security Agencies for their vigilance and support and t residents of the area for their cooperation during the rescue operations.
READ ALSO: UPDATED: Four rescued alive, One dead, others trapped in Abuja mall collapse
Idriss, however, appealed to developers to always obey the building code and warned residents to desist from living in uncompleted buildings.
Also, Mr Ikharo Attah, Senior Special Assistant on Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement to the FCT Minister, said the owner of the property was fore-warned by concerned residents.
“The building was initially a shopping mall, but the report we got from residents was that the owner was warned, and at a certain point, it was now being converted to a residential apartment.
“The down was a shopping mall, but they were putting up some blocks of flat on the first and second suspended floors. You cannot alter a shopping mall and convert to a residential building thereby giving it more load that what it was meant to carry,” he said.
Attah added that the FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Bello had ordered that tests be carried out on most of the high rise buildings around the area.
He noted that the combined team of security agencies at the scene is currently trailing the owner of the property, who residents suggested may have absconded.
“We have a policy in the FCTA that when a building collapses, the land is forfeited and revoked and the place is converted into a park or garden for residents around the neighbourhood,” he added.
On his part, Umar Shuaibu, Coordinator, Abuja Metropolitan Management Council, blamed the incident on quackery and shady construction, adding that the FCTA has a policy of subjecting old buildings to integrity test.
The Osun State Executive Council has approved the appointment of Prince Timileyin Oluyemi Ajayi, a United Kingdom based IT Engineer as the Olojudo of Ido Ajegunle in Obokun Local Government.
The Council also approved five other new kings and elevation of two others to part two chiefs.
This was detailed in a government house statement in Osogbo, on Thursday by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Oluomo Kolapo Alimi.
The new king who studied Office and Information Management at Lead City University Ibadan, Nigeria before his sojourn abroad, is an entrepreneur and business owner who invested in the hospitality and the agricultural industry.
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Other approved new kings are Prince Emmanuel Adesokan Ayoola as the Oluwaro of Iwaro in Ife North Local Government Area and Prince Kazeem Deji Ogungbe as Oniwata of Iwata in Irewole Local Government.
In the same vein, the Council approved the elevation of Baale Owajigbo of Ejigbo-Orangun; Baale Owamagbon of Ila, Baale Owafaye of Obalogbo-Ila (Ila Traditional Council); Baale Osi Okero-Ife, Baale Mayowa Ifegunle-Ife; Olu of Apatalami-Ife; Baale Ayede Temidire Town; Baale Akingbade of Ayetutu Ipoye-Ife (Ife Traditional Council).
Other elevations include the Looyin of Olodo Okebode-Ijesa; Ologbese of Ogbese (Atakunmosa West); Alaye Daramola-Ijesa (Atakunmosa East); Baale of Ajitena (Ejigbo Traditional Council) and Olaota of Osunwoyin (Ayedire Local Government) to Part II (Recognized) Status of The Chief’s Law, Cap.25, Laws of The Osun State, 2002.
The Council, presided over by Governor Ademola Adeleke also approved the White Paper on the Report of a Judicial Panel of Inquiry into the Aragbiji of Iragbiji Chieftaincy Declaration.
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced that it will not approve admissions for the Law programme at several Nigerian universities for the 2025/2026 academic session.
This follows a suspension order from the Council of Legal Education (CLE) regarding the Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) programme at the affected institutions.
In a statement released on Wednesday, JAMB’s Public Communications Advisor, Fabian Benjamin, confirmed that no admissions would be granted to candidates seeking to enroll in Law programmes at the universities listed below.
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The suspension is part of ongoing measures to regulate and standardize legal education in the country.
Benjamin stated, “JAMB will not approve any admissions for candidates seeking to enroll in the Law programme at the affected universities for the 2025/2026 academic session.”
The institutions impacted by the suspension include:
Kwara State University, Malete, Ilorin, Kwara State
- Bingham University, Karu, Nasarawa State
- Redeemers University, Ede, Osun State
- Western Delta University, Oghara, Delta State
- Taraba State University, Jalingo, Taraba State
- Arthur Jarvis University, Akpabuyo, Cross River State
- Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike, Ebonyi State
- Nigerian Police Academy, Wudil, Kano State
Furthermore, the Nigerian Police Academy in Wudil, Kano State, will see its Law programme suspended for an extended period.
Benjamin further elaborated, “Please note that the suspension of the Law programme at the Nigerian Police Academy, Wudil, Kano State, will last for two academic sessions: specifically, the 2025/2026 and 2026/2027 sessions.”
JAMB has urged prospective students to take note of these changes when making their application decisions for the upcoming academic year.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has announced plans for a nationwide protest on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, in response to a recent telecommunications tariff hike.
The protest comes after the Federal Government approved a 50% increase, following telecom operators’ initial request for a 100% hike.
The announcement was made following an emergency National Administrative Council (NAC) meeting on Wednesday, where NLC President Joe Ajaero strongly criticized the hike.
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He called it “insensitive, unjustifiable, and a direct assault on Nigerian workers and the general populace, who are already burdened by worsening economic hardship.”
In a statement, Ajaero condemned the Nigerian Communications Commission’s (NCC) decision to approve the increase, calling it a harsh blow to citizens already grappling with the effects of rising costs across multiple sectors.
He emphasized that the 50% tariff hike was too much for the Nigerian people, particularly those earning the minimum wage of N70,000 per month.
Ajaero explained that the protest rally on February 4 would serve as a warning to the government, highlighting the growing dissatisfaction among Nigerians who have already faced high petrol prices, soaring food costs, electricity tariff hikes, and rising inflation.
“All NLC affiliates and state councils are directed to begin full mobilisation in preparation for the nationwide protest rally,” Ajaero said. He urged civil society groups to join the movement, calling on workers, the informal sector, and the general public to stand in solidarity against the tariff hike.
The NLC also issued a demand for the immediate suspension of the tariff hike and called for meaningful dialogue with the Federal Government, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), and the National Assembly.
Ajaero warned that if the hike is not reversed, the NLC would consider escalating its actions, including a possible nationwide boycott of telecommunication services.
“The NLC remains committed to safeguarding the interests of Nigerian workers and citizens,” Ajaero asserted. “We will not relent in our struggle against policies that undermine the welfare and dignity of our people.”
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