Abuja bomb blasts – Portraits of victims, heroes

Tahir Hassan BiuPeace. A word of salutation from a Lord Most Merciful!” These were the last words of communication posted by the late EFCC officer, Tahir Hassan, 28, on his Facebook profile. According to his friends, it almost seemed as though he was saying goodbye. He had been sitting at home, enjoying the public holiday […]

Tahir Hassan Biu
Peace. A word of salutation from a Lord Most Merciful!” These were the last words of communication posted by the late EFCC officer, Tahir Hassan, 28, on his Facebook profile. According to his friends, it almost seemed as though he was saying goodbye. He had been sitting at home, enjoying the public holiday with his family when destiny pulled him to the venue of the Independence Day bomb blasts.
Recounting their last and most memorable moments with late Tahir, Amina, the widow of the deceased, narrated how she walked her husband out of the house to get into the car with their eight-month-old baby on one hand and his wife (Amina) glued to his other side. Tahir waved goodbye to Amina. Amina said it was much later, on that same sad Friday afternoon that she received a phone call from her sister-in-law, Adama, asking the whereabouts of her husband. According to Amina, “I told her Tahir had gone to Eagle Square with his friend Najib to watch the celebration. So she asked me to call his line. When I called, his phone wasn’t going through; I then tried his friend’s line.  Najib’s number wasn’t going through as well. After several efforts, I finally got Najib’s Zain line and a lady answered the call. I told her I was Tahir’s wife and wished to speak with the owner of the phone. That was when she told me that there was bomb blasts and the owner of the phone was in hospital and they didn’t know the whereabouts of his friend (my husband).”
To Tahir’s widow and baby, life will never be the same. “There are many things I will miss about my Tahir, especially making tea for him. He loves tea. Sometimes after taking care of the house, the baby and preparing his food, just as I am about to sit and watch television or something, he will look at me with a smile. I will miss that a lot.”
Alhaji Zakari Biu, father of the deceased said the last time he spoke to his late son was the Thursday before the Friday blast. “Every father will wish to have a son like Tahir,” said the father of the deceased. “He was an all rounder and right from the time he became an adult, I have known him to be my friend. He has always been a source of pride to me and the entire family. My only consolation is that I have his friends around me who also regard me as their father.”
He said his son did not deserve to die the way he did. He told Weekly Trust that aside his office delegation and colleagues, no any Federal Government delegation has paid any sort of condolence visit to the family, up till the time of filing this report. His younger sister, Adama described Tahir as her friend and one person she confided in. Maryam, his elder sister said, “Tahir was a father, a brother and everything to us. He has left a very big vacuum that cannot be filled.”

Corporal John Joshua
Corporal John Joshua’s body bore the tell-tale scars of the Independence Day bombings as he sat on his hospital bed at the Maitama General Hospital. His back and chest is pockmarked by burns and scars from the blast that went off at the Eagle Square venue of the anniversary celebrations. Corporal Joshua was supposed to be off duty on the day of the blast but was told to remain because of the Independence Day celebrations.
While on his way to the Eagle Square on his motorbike he saw people running after the first blast went off. He proceeded with his motorbike and rescued two children who were lying on the road near a burning car. After taking the children to a waiting ambulance he went to recue another man when the second blast erupted, affecting him.
Rather than mourning his situation, the corporal said he is happy to be around to rescue the children from the blast which also affected him. He said: “I am glad that at least I was able to save those kids from the disaster that would have happened that day and also saved their parents from the anguish most parents and relatives of those that lost their loved ones are going through now. It was devastating but I thank God that he spared my life to give a testimony.”

Abubakar Agie
Abubakar Agie, an Assistant Vehicle Inspection Officer never anticipated that he would not go back home that day when he left his family in Mararaba in the early hours of that fateful day of the blast to report for his line of duty for the October celebration . He said:  “I was part of the entourage that brought the President to Eagle Square and not too long after he had settled we heard a blast and fire service men were running out of the venue of the event and asking that we join in rescuing some victims as there had just been a blast. As we were assisting people, another bomb went off and I could not remember anything after that.
“Though I do not have any external injuries, I am told I have internal injuries which might be serious. I have a problem with my back, ear and head which they say they fear might have something to do with my brain as I keep complaining of persistent headache. Several tests have been carried out and they have said for now I cannot go anywhere as my case might look less serious while in actual fact it is very serious. I just hope at the end of it all I get better and go back home to my family as they have been tense, not knowing what the future has in store for them should anything worse happens to me.”

Haruna Hassan
Haruna Hassan is a Mobile Police (MOPOL) officer on duty. His face bore the marks of the shrapnel from the bomb that erupted during the blast. Now, he is waiting to undergo an eye operation. He said: “As I speak to you I can’t remember anything that happened. I was on guard and when I woke up I found myself in the hospital. My major problem now is my eye. When I was referred to Asokoro General Hospital due to the lack of equipment to handle the case here at the Maitama hospital I had no idea what was in store for me. But on reaching there I was told a different thing and it seems my condition is more serious than I thought. I could not help but shed tears while I was being told that the eye had to be operated upon so that it does not affect the other eye which already shows indications of infection. I was told that there are particles in the eye and immediate surgery is needed to make the necessary corrections.”

ASP Anthony Etim
ASP Anthony Etim is on admission at the National Hospital, Abuja where he is being treated for serious leg injuries. His shin has been shattered by the blast just when he is due to retire from the police force in January, 2011 after 35 years of service.
ASP Etim was among the dozens of security men posted to Eagle Square to maintain law and order. He said: “I was at the scene of the blast trying to save people who have been hit by the first bomb and prevent others from going in that direction when the second one went off and knocked me down. I have no regrets about the fact that I was on duty.”

Mayowa Adeniran
Mayowa Adeniran, 26, an unemployed graduate of Geology, felt that going with friends to celebrate the Independence Day was the best way to keep hope alive. A bomb explosion was the last thing that he expected would happen. He said: “I was going for a picnic at Millennium Park organized by the youth in my church to mark the independence celebration. Coming all the way from Mararaba on getting to Area 11 junction we were stopped as vehicles were restricted from moving to that area and we had no option but to disembark and trek to the park. There was a blast and at the same time I felt something strike me and it sent a burning sensation around my ear and before I could realize what was happening I just saw blood gushing out uncontrollably from my ear. I think I collapsed at that moment and after sometime with people running over me and screaming I regained consciousness and tried to pull myself to safety. Some people came to my aid shouting that I was not dead yet, that I was still alive. That was when it struck me that something bad had happened. I have been in the hospital since on the first and I would be going to the theater for my final surgery as they say my ear arteries were affected and they are also hoping that it does not affect my brain as they say everything goes hand in hand. Since I finished my NYSC with the National Examination Council, Lafia, I have been struggling to make ends meet and believed that there would be hope at the end of the tunnel for the country and my situation. I have been an orphan all my life, depending on aunts, uncles and friends and just when I thought that things will ease up for me a little this came, dashing all hopes that I had. Giving us money will not solve the situation most of us find ourselves in because money never lasts, before you know what is happening it is gone. I am appealing to the government to provide good and decent jobs for those of us affected.”

Loveth Ochabo
The unemployed OND graduate of Benue State Polytechnic said she was not aware of what was going on aside the blasting sounds she heard and her being thrown to the ground. She said: “I was in front of the Millennium Park. I did not know when the first one went off, I was only aware of the second one going off. I really cannot tell which one it was that hit me, all I remember was that I heard a fierce deafening sound and was thrown to the ground. I had injuries on my stomach, breasts, thighs, legs and back. I cannot say for sure if it were the flying objects that hit me or the inferno that caused the injuries. So far I am responding very well to treatment and looking forward to getting back to my routine.”

Austin Oko Olajie
Austin Oko Olaije was hit by the second bomb blast in front of the Federal High Court. He said he was prevented from entering the Eagle Square because he had no tag permitting him to do so and had to go and park his car somewhere.
He said: “I was directed to go and park in the area of the Federal High Court. After I parked, I began walking back to the venue. Due to the fact that I was recovering from malaria and still not in the best form, I decided not to go into the square in order to avoid the crowd. I was viewing the event from the fence when I heard the first bomb go off. I had never heard anything about bomb blast so I thought it was one of the anniversary balloons that exploded and caused the fire I was seeing. The normal reaction for anybody would be to go and take a look, which is what I did.  I noticed that about four cars away from mine were ablaze. I noticed an SSS officer three cars away from mine standing in confusion. But I went up to him and asked what happened. In his confusion he was not coherent. While standing there I felt a prompting to leave the area but somehow did not yield to it immediately. Then, just when I turned round to move away, the second one went off. I felt the impact immensely on my left leg. It tore my skin and I heard my bones crack. Somehow and I believe supernaturally, I was lifted from there to a different spot as I watched everybody else around me lie motionless, dead.  A youth corps member who was making a call for help when the first one went off died and I saw the body of the SSS officer thrown up in the air and come down in shreds. I lay there beneath the black clouds of smoke very conscious of all that was going on. I looked down and saw my bones jutting out in one direction as my shoe faced another. I noticed the fingers on my left hand were chopped off considerably so much so that I could see my bones. Having gone through such an experience I am yet to understand why God spared my life and spared my vital organs in spite of the way I was thrown around by the blast and considering the fact that everybody around me died with some scattered to pieces. I feel grateful to God. I have not been able to tell my mother about it because she a widow and is away in my hometown. I am the manager at a car sales shop and it is my earnings from there that keeps my family and I going. I am the first of five children and also the breadwinner of the family looking after my mum and younger ones as well as a few relatives from time to time.”

Corporal Awwalu Abdul
Corporal Awwalu Abdul was one of the police asked to keep vigil around the vicinity of the Federal Secretariat during the celebrations alongside 12,000 policemen drafted in strategic locations in Abuja. Abdul said he was walking along the road monitoring the movement of people when the first blast occur and while he was on his way to assist the victims another blast took place few meters away from him and the intensity of the flame that followed enveloped all the people around including some vehicles. He sustained burns in the legs, stomach and face. Abdul said apart from medication which the government said it will pay for, nothing else was done. Abdul has asked one of his friends to stay with him at the hospital so as to help him buy food.

Abdullahi Doma
Abdullahi Doma works with the Directorate of Road Traffic Services and is one of those affected by the October 1 blasts. Doma said when the first blast occurred he drove to the scene together with an official of the fire service to offer help to the first casualties. “But as soon as I stopped,” he said, “the fire service official disembarked from the vehicle and went to the scene.  That was when the second blast occurred nearby. The fire service official was tossed to the centre of the blast and burnt. I also watched as the third explosion occurred in a Black Mercedes (C-Class) model parked at the other side of the road towards the Federal Ministry of Justice. The explosive devices were planted in several vehicles at both sides of the Shehu Shagari way.” he said.