It was a frightening narrow escape on Good Friday night for travellers on board an Abakaliki-bound 59-seater luxury bus, when armed robbers attacked them at Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, and set the vehicle ablaze with all the passengers on board.
The dare-devil robbers had earlier stripped them of their belongings, and locked the vehicle from outside before torching it
But, what would have been the most horrific robbery scene in recent time turned out not to be, as the passengers were said to have smashed the glass windows, and climbed out of the bus before it was completely consumed by the raging inferno.
The management of Ifesinachi Transport Nig Ltd, confirmed on Easter Sunday that the ill-fated bus belonged to the company, and that the vehicle took off from Maza Maza in Lagos, on Good Friday, March 29, enroute Abakaliki, Ebonyi State.
Speaking of the attack on Sunday, the Managing Director/CEO of Ifesinachi, Prince Emeka Mamah, said he was still in shock over “this new dimension to armed robbery which is now accompanied by terrorism.”
Also reacting to the incident, the National President of the Association of Luxury Bus Owners of Nigeria (ALBON), Mr. Nonso Ubajaka, bemoaned the rising cases of robbery and kidnapping targeted at members’ vehicles on various routes across the country lately.
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“But, robbing and burning a luxury bus with 59 passengers on board is unprecedented. This is no longer robbery. It is terrorism,” Ubajaka said on Sunday.
A passenger who narrated the incident early Saturday morning in a video recording that showed parts of the long bus still burning, confirmed that no life was lost, though, according to him, some of them sustained injuries.
The passenger, who like many other victims, lost his shirt and other belongings to the robbers, narrated, “This is the night bus (showing the charred remains of the 59-seater vehicle) in which we were travelling home for Easter on Friday.
“The armed robbers attacked us at Ijebu Ode, and dealt with us: They stripped us of our dresses and belongings and beat us mercilessly. Some of us have Matchett wounds
“They forced us back into the bus and set it ablaze. But, we are grateful to God that nobody was burnt to death, because we all managed to escape from the burning vehicle alive.
“Though some of us sustained only injuries, we all lost our belongings because the robbers took everything with them, including even the clothes some of us were wearing.
“We have been stranded here since 2 am (Saturday morning): Men, women and children who are innocently travelling to the east to celebrate Easter.”
To the Managing Director of Ifesinachi, that armed robbers now operate like terrorists is a terrifying dimension that should worry all and sundry, including the government, because nobody knows who will be the victim next time.
Prince Mamah lamented, “I can’t imagine the motive behind the burning of the bus after robbing the passengers of all their phones and valuables, plus the limited cash on hand.
“It is a very dangerous trend which needs to be investigated and a stop put to it. If nothing is done now, we may not be lucky next time as no casualty was recorded Friday night, but anything could happen to anyone when next they strike.”
Also speaking further, Ubajaka appealed to the Federal Government and the various security agencies to urgently devise new strategies to tackle the rising insecurity in the country, and particularly make the highways safer for transporters and travellers.
The ALBON National President stated, “Something very drastic has to be done urgently to arrest this ugly dimension to highway robbery. The passengers whose bus was set ablaze at Ijebu Ode were lucky to have escaped. Who knows what next the robbers would do? Maybe they will use dynamite next time.
“And that is why everybody should be worried, including the government and the security agencies. These days when air fares are going out of the reach of average Nigerians, many people are now using the comfortable, long distance buses instead. But, how can people feel safe when the buses are frequently attacked these days.
“That’s why I said the government should do something before it is too late.”