Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq of Kwara state has condoled with families of the victims of Gbajibo boat mishap, Kaiama local government area of the state, involving traders from Niger state over the weekend.
In a statement by the Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to the governor, Rafiu Ajakaye, the governor also sends condolences to the government of Niger state on the sad incident.
The governor reiterated his appeal to boat operators and passengers to adhere to safety regulations for the good of all, describing as painful and unacceptable a culture of not using safety gadgets repeatedly provided by the government.
He prays to God to repose the souls of the victims.
It is recalled that a boat mishap incident claimed the lives of 27 people in the area last Thursday, few months after a boat mishap claimed over 100 lives in the Gbajibo community in the Kaiama local government area of Kwara state.
It was gathered that passengers in the ill-fated boat were returning from market expedition in Niger state when the incident occurred.
It was also gathered that the incident which happened in the night, was as a result of passenger overloading.
An eye witness and a survivor, who narrated how the incident happened, said that the incident happened Thursday at night while returning from Niger state due to overloading.
The eyewitness, who could not give exact number of passengers on the boat, said that the heavy wind that accompanied an impending rainfall was also responsible for the incident.
Speaking on the development, the chairman of Kaiama local government area, Abdullah Danladi, who led the government delegation to commiserate with families of the victims on Saturday, said the government would no longer tolerate the nearly yearly occurrence.
The council boss said that the council would set up a committee to ensure the usage of life jackets and stop night travelling, among other measures.
The Emir of Kaiama community, Mallam Muazu Umar, said that enlightenment would be intensified to ensure passengers and boat operators adhere to water travel safety standards.
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