Patience Jonathan’s Mother’s Death: FRSC Probes Cause Of Accident The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has commenced investigation into the cause of the accident involving a black Toyota Corolla vehicle, which killed the mother of the first lady, Mrs Patience Jonathan, Mrs Charity Oba and a girl. The Rivers State Police Command has also confirmed the death of Mrs Oba, in a fatal accident on the Isiokpo-Elele axis of the Port Harcourt-Owerri Road in Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers State. Mrs Oba, fondly called ‘Sisi’, was travelling from Port Harcourt to Bayelsa State, in company of her driver and two others when the accident occurred at about 4.00 pm on Monday. Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, Mrs Agnes Agabe, said that Mrs. Oba and a 12-year old girl, identified as Favour died in the accident while the driver and one other person, who was identified as a woman in her early 30’s sustained injuries. Agabe, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), further said that corpse of the woman and the little girl have been deposited at Kpaima Mortuary, a privately-owned morgue, located on Elechi Beach, in the Mile One area of Port Harcourt metropolis. FRSC sector commander in Rivers State Dr Kayode Olagunju said that the Corps could not specifically disclose the cause of the accident until the investigation is concluded. Olagunju said; “For now, we cannot say what caused the accident. We are still investigating and will definitely let you know the cause when we conclude the investigation.” However, a senior FRSC official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that over-speeding by the driver of the vehicle could not be ruled out as the main cause of the accident. He said; “Though, I was not among the first set of FRSC officials to arrive at the scene of the accident, but watching from where they vehicle veered off the road and tumbled into the bush, you will know that the driver was actually on a high speed when he lost control of the car.” Efforts to get the reaction of the Rivers State government on the incident proved abortive as both the state commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs Ibim Seminetari and the chief press secretary to the Governor, Mr. David Iyofor, were said to have accompanied Governor Chibuike Amaechi on an official trip to the United Kingdom. Life of Mrs Oba Late Mrs Charity Iwari- Oba hails from the Iwari compound of Oba Dokume House of Okrika in Okrika Local Government Area of Rivers State. Popularly called ‘Sisi’ by her children and relations, she was the second wife of Chief Lazarus Iwari-Oba. Sisi, at the time of her death, was believed to be in her late 70s. She became the adopted mother of the wife of the President, Dame Patience Jonathan, after the death of her (Patience’s) mother several years ago. She was returning to Otuoke in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, the home-town of President Goodluck Jonathan after spending some days in Okrika, in company of her drivers and two personal attendants, when the driver lost control of the car, which tumbled several times into a near-by bush on the Elele-Isiokpo section of the Port Harcourt-Owerri Express Road. The Isiokpo-Elele Road The Rivers State axis of the Port Harcourt-Owerri Road was recently expanded from single lane to a dual carriage way at an estimated cost of N24 billion by the administration of Governor Chibuike Amaechi. The road has only one bridge at Isiokpo, near the scene of the accident that claimed the life of Mrs. Oba and the little girl. Motorists and officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) are of the opinion that most of the accidents that occur on the Rivers State axis of the Port Harcourt-Owerri Road were not due to bad state of the road but over-speeding. The scene of the accident was short distance from Ubima Junction, where the Isiokpo zone of the FRSC has a check-point. Ubima is the home-town of Governor Amaechi. Meanwhile the First Lady is reported to be devastated by the news of the accident. The First Lady, who had been in Geneva where she was appointed Champion for Child Online Protection by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) at the launch of the Child Online Protection (COP) initiative which is part of the overall thrust to strengthen cybersecurity. “The First Lady is indeed very devastated by the sad news. We are expecting her back to the country today)”, a presidency source who spoke on condition of anonymity last night said. It would be recalled that the late Mrs.Iwari-Oba was in Germany in April to receive treatment for an undisclosed ailment as confirmed by the Presidency. Mrs Atiku Abubakar Mourns Wife of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, HajiyaTiti Abubakar has expressed her condolences to the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan on the death of her mother, Mrs.Iwari-Oba, in a car crash. In a letter of condolence she released in Abuja yesterday, Hajiya Titi Abubakar said that she was personally touched by the sudden and unfortunate death of the First Lady’s mother. According to HajiyaTitiAbubakar, mother’s love is the deepest experience in the life of her children and for that reason, she said, Nigerians should connect to the First Lady with a sense of sympathy and empathy. Hajiya Titi Abubakar said that as a child, she experienced a mother’s love and understood what it meant to lose a mother at whatever age. She prayed to God to grant the deceased eternal rest and the family the fortitude to bear this immense loss.
Posted on: Wed, 24 Jul 2013 22:03:44 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015