The Ikoyi Building Collapse in Lagos State has taken another turn following more recent discoveries under the rubbles of the twenty-one storey structure.
Data from the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, and its counterpart, the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, reveal that the number of dead bodies recovered from the accident site has risen to twenty-two from the initial sixteen reported.
NEMA confirmed the numbers on Wednesday 3, adding that some other bodies were pulled out of the structural remains in the early hours of the day.
Following the development, it was gathered that the DeputyGovernor of Lagos State, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, and General Manager, Lagos State Building Control Agency, LASBCA, Mr Gbolahan Oki, differed over circumstances that surrounded the unprofessionally constructed building.
Mr Oki believed that the contracted housing developer went against the instructions to build a fifteen storey structure; hence, he decided to construct twenty-one.
On the other hand, Dr Hamzat insisted that the developer had the permission and approval to construct twenty-one floors, stressing that the Government initially halted the project because of some structural anomalies.
Hamzat noted that the project site was sealed in June this year for four months by the relevant agency when it was discovered that there were some anomalies in the construction process.
Meanwhile, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, yesterday, ordered an indefinite suspension of the LASBCA boss, Mr Gbolahan Oki.