The Ekiti State Government says the four persons who died during the week after their boat capsized at Egbe Dam in Gbonyin Local Government Area of the state were neither World Bank officials nor workers of the state government.
It had been reported earlier that four World Bank Consultants drowned in Egbe River on Tuesday night.
The victims were said to have come from the Development Dams and Irrigation Schemes, Kaduna State, and had died when the boat carrying seven of them and their equipment capsized.
But in a statement on Friday, Mr. Idowu Adelusi, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Ayodele Fayose, said the victims were staff members of Enviplan Nigeria Limited, a company the state awarded the contract for the bathymetry surveying of the Egbe Dam to.
Tagged the Third Urban Water Sector Reform Project, the state government said the project was only sponsored, but not being done by the World Bank.
The statement said, “The sad incident happened because some safety measures were not adhered to by the deceased who refused to wear life jackets and those who survived wore life jackets provided by the company. The victims are staff of Enviplan Nigeria Limited, which is a consulting firm to the World Bank.”
“The victims are Alaran Tirimisiyu, Abdulwaheed Alayande, David Malu and Albert, while the survivors are Charles Ehinlaye, Bukky Ajet and Yahaya. It should be noted that no World Bank official or Ekiti State Water Corporation staff member was involved.
“The Third Urban Water Project commiserates with the families of the departed and prays that God grant them the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.”
Source: Punchng.com
