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Cause Of Kano Explosion Doesn’t Matter, Whether It Was Suicide Bombing Or Gas Explosion – Emergency Management Boss

The building now collapsed and the issue of whether it’s a cylinder or not is not our own priority

The Executive Secretary of Kano State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Saleh Jili, has maintained that although the cause of the explosion that rocked Sabo Gari in Fagge Local Government Area of Kano State on Tuesday does not matter, it was not a bomb blast as claimed by eyewitnesses.
 
Jili made the statement while speaking with Arise News on Wednesday.

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There have been claims and counterclaims between the government and eyewitnesses from the area over the actual cause of the explosion which killed nine people and injured many others.
 
The explosion also destroyed a building in the area.
 
Whereas residents claimed that they saw a suicide bomber from whom an explosive device went off, the Kano State Commissioner of Police, Sama'ila Dikko and officials of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) insisted that the explosion was caused by a gas cylinder.
 
But in his reaction to the incident, the SEMA boss, Jili, said, “When the explosion happened, people were so anxious to come and see what happened, and so the place was so overcrowded. There was a building which was about to collapse, so our attention then was to get an excavator to ensure the building didn’t fall on the general public. So that’s what we were busy doing.
 
“The building now collapsed and the issue of whether it’s a cylinder or not is not our own priority then. Our priority was to rescue the people who were inside the building that collapsed.
 
“So now the government will set up a committee to fully investigate the actual cause of the explosion. So, it doesn’t matter whether the welder was using electricity or a gas cylinder. The investigation will show whether he was using electricity or not. But all we are saying is that it’s not a bomb blast.”
 
The Executive Secretary further said that although people were just being negative, what mattered was that the ugly incident already happened and lives have been lost.
 
“People can say anything because they want negative thinking. But if it’s a bomb blast, and it has already happened, what is the interest there? Why do people insist it must be a bomb blast? What happened has already happened. Who were wounded were wounded. Whether it was a gas explosion or a bomb blast, what’s the interest of the general public? What benefit do we have?” Jiji questioned.