CAINE'S Memoirs

 It is quite amazing that history keeps repeating itself when it comes to tragedies in Lagos, rather than we learning from the past. The consistent spate of pipeline explosions in Nigeria leaves one in a quandry as to what our leader actually spend their years in office doing.

 With little facilities and resources to go by, researchers in the country cannot raise their heads high to compete with their foreign counterparts as to preventive and control measures when it comes to human safety in times of natural and unprecedented disasters.

 The May 15, 2008 pipleine fire tragedy which struck Lagosians at close to midday, was one too many of such unabated occurences, which had left many families and lives ruined. The explosion was the "recorded" 8th in the state, and 18th in the country, since October 18, 1998.

 Funny enough, worries of such disaster only last for a few days, and everyone forgets about it. No one investigates, no one places forward strategies to check and combat future occurences, and most times, there is no one to hold responsible, everything is just swept under the carpet.

 Unfortunately some of the past explosions were as a result of unscrupulous individuals who stupidly and carlously scooped fuel from burst pipeline. Yes, it could be seen from the angle of greed, poverty, or the wrath of God, but the latest incident showed that man is more ignorant than just disobeying God and eating the forbidden fruit.

 The explosion in Lagos was as a result of an earthmover driver grading the Ijegun-Isolo-Jakande Estate road, slated for dualisation by the Lagos State Government, who unknowingly ruptured a pipeline which cut across the area to other parts of the state. Did I say the "State Government"? Oh yes i did!

 Does that mean the project was carried out by the government of the state, or one of its employed agencies? And there was no foresight or information that the area had a pipline constructed for fuel distribution? How amazing!

 Where are the information and research departments of the state government? Are they only functional when the budget allocation is being shared? Or after tragedies have occured then they supply information on the area? This shows incompetency, not only in the part of these government ministries, but on the so-called "Emergency Management Agencies".

 The latest tragedy is not only an eyesore to the rot that has engraved itself to the government of the day, but the the decay in society as to the legitimate human "right to life".

 It should not be a surprise if a similar disaster reoccurs, it has nothing to do with being religious. At least we rememeber what we all said in 2002 after the Ikeja bomb blast in Lagos, where we were reassured that a similar occurence would not repeat itself. That was  six years ago! Nine similar disasters have happened after that, this in 2008 rounds it up as number 10, seven of that in Lagos alone.

 God bless Nigeria! God bless Lagosians! Eko o ni baje o!