The explosion had claimed nine lives and injured 10 other persons on Monday.
Residents and witnesses of the explosion which rocked Sabon Gari area of Kano State on Tuesday have given conflicting claims about the cause of the incident after the state government said it was a gas mishap.
The explosion had claimed nine lives and injured 10 other persons on Monday.
Whereas the state government and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said the explosion was caused by an exploded gas cylinder from a gas shop, witness reports maintained that it was a handiwork of a suicide bomber.
Speaking to Arise TV, a witness, the Director of Winners Triumph Excel Academy, Lennie Ujaja, said, “It was a suicide bomber that came; and I want you to pass this information across the way I’m telling you now. It was not gas explosion. Ir was a suicide bomber. We saw him. So that is the fact but God intervened.”
Also, an eyewitness who is a teacher in undisclosed school, Godspride Timothy said, “After our assembly in the morning, I was in a class teaching the students and all of a sudden we heard a sound, and on reaching here, we saw the explosion and some dead bodies around.
“And we are hearing in news now that the government said it was a gas explosion, while what we saw and what we heard was a bomb blast sound. I’m an engineering student. I know what is gas; and what is bomb explosion. So, I don’t see the reason why the government would be telling us that it is a gas explosion while we know the truth.
“So, I don’t know if they are trying to cover their shame or trying to cover their insecurity in the state.”
Meanwhile, the Kano state Commissioner of Police, CP Sama'ila Dikko, when he visited the scene of the incident said the explosion was caused by gas cylinder and not a suicide bomber.
The CP said, “If you can see it, they said it was a bomb explosion but sincerely, it was a gas explosion. It was not a bomb explosion.”
Similarly, NEMA officials insisted that the explosion was caused by a gas explosion.
However, residents of the area have called on the government to thoroughly investigate the actual cause of the explosion.