Opinion
The Menace Of Fire Incidents In Nigeria
Fire incident is a recurring problem of Nigeria. Yearly, cases of fire incidents are reported in the country without any sign of cessation. This is worrying. We should be careful whenever we are handling materials that can cause fire particularly petroleum material. Recently, Nigeria experienced one of her worst cases of fire incidents. According to reports, residents of Ojoo Area of Ibadan watched helplessly as fire from an oil tanker burnt their loved ones to ashes. More than twenty six people, including a nursing mother, died in the incident while several others suffered various degrees of burns. Those who suffered burns were rushed to hospitals in the area for medical attention. The incident occurred at Aduloju Community along Iwo-Ojoo Road. Apart from those who died and suffered injuries, several cars worth millions of naira were burnt to ashes. Eight buildings, including a church, were also destroyed by the fire. The Oyo State fire service later arrived the scene to put out the fire. But by the time they arrived, great destruction and death had been caused. The incident occurred on May 29, 2011. We are really touched by this incident. Petroleum Tanker drivers should be very careful whenever they are transporting what is highly inflammable. Now, the lives that have been lost cannot be regained. They have gone forever. That is why we should always take care whenever we are dealing with combustible materials.
In a similar development, the Central Bank of Nigeria building situated in the heart of Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa State, was gutted by fire on July 1, 2011. The damage to the building was estimated at millions of naira. However, the arrival of the Bayelsa State Fire Service saved the building from further destruction. It will be recalled that fire outbreak was earlier reported in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. According to reports, houses and other properties were destroyed by the fire which occurred in Onopa, Yenagoa. The incident also claimed some lives, including a pregnant woman. It was further reported that the pregnant woman, Mrs Benita Olotu and her son, Paul, had just returned from a funeral when the incident happened. Mrs Olotu was tired and immediately retired to her room. She was asleep when the fire started and gutted her apartment. The fire could not be put out until after five hours. According to sources, the fire started when a dealer in adulterated fuel was refuelling a generator set that was on. Then there was a spark which resulted in the fire that spread to the whole community destroying many houses and other properties as already stated. In fact, no fewer than fifty houses were destroyed by the fire. Properties destroyed were estimated at billions of naira.
The Governor of Bayelsa State, Mr Timipre Sylva, expressed shock at the extent of destruction caused by the fire. He promised to compensate the affected families; he directed that names of those affected should be compiled and sent to him, warning against inclusion of fake names. However, the main cause of the fire was a spark from a generator being fuelled with adulterated petrol by a dealer when it was on. This behaviour should be condemned and discouraged. Petrol should not be kept in living houses, let alone being fuelled into a generator set that was on. Another condemnable act was that the fuel was an adulterated one. Why must somebody be using an adulterated fuel to power a generator? Using adulterated petrol is very dangerous. The habit should stop.
Not long ago, fire outbreak was reported at the Nembe Jetty, Creek Road, Port Harcourt. One person died in the incident and a speedboat burnt. According to reports, the boat was filled to capacity with passengers and was about leaving the Jetty when it went up in flames following a spark in the engine. All the passengers except one managed to escape before the boat exploded. This was an unfortunate incident. We should always make sure that our electrical fittings and appliances are always in order. Care should always be taken with the way we fix our electrical fittings. If the fittings are well fixed, electric sparks will be rare. Faulty engines should also not be used in our speed boats. These could cause problems at any point of the voyage.
Nonetheless, fire outbreaks are caused by many factors. Storing of petrol in living houses and markets is one of the factors. Other causes include careless disposal of cigarette stubs in living houses, markets and offices. Adulterated fuel also causes fire. Power surge, electric sparks, illegal connection of electricity, lighted match, stoves, cookers and gas cylinders are all sources of fire. Some fire outbreaks are caused by human beings with evil intent. However, to check the high frequency of fire incidents the above mentioned sources of fire should be avoided.
Dr Tolofari, Distinguished Fellow, Institute of Corporate Administration of Nigeria, Abuja.
Mann Tolofari
The events that unfolded in Abuja on Tuesday November 11, 2025 between the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Chief Nyesom Wike and a detachment of soldiers guarding a disputed property, led by Adams Yerima, a commissioned Naval Officer, may go down as one of the defining images of Nigeria’s democratic contradictions. It was not merely a quarrel over land. It was a confrontation between civil authority and the military legacy that still hovers over our national life.
Nyesom Wike, fiery and fearless as always, was seen on video exchanging words with a uniformed officer who refused to grant him passage to inspect a parcel of land alleged to have been illegally acquired. The minister’s voice rose, his temper flared, and the soldier, too, stood his ground, insisting on his own authority. Around them, aides, security men, and bystanders watched, stunned, as two embodiments of the Nigerian state clashed in the open.
The images spread fast, igniting debates across drawing rooms, beer parlours, and social media platforms. Some hailed Wike for standing up to military arrogance; others scolded him for perceived disrespect to the armed forces. Yet beneath the noise lies a deeper question about what sort of society we are building and whether power in Nigeria truly understands the limits of its own reach.
It is tragic that, more than two decades into civil rule, the relationship between the civilian arm of government and the military remains fragile and poorly understood. The presence of soldiers in a land dispute between private individuals and the city administration is, by all civic standards, an aberration. It recalls a dark era when might was right, and uniforms conferred immunity against accountability.
Wike’s anger, even if fiery, was rooted in a legitimate concern: that no individual, however connected or retired, should deploy the military to protect personal interests. That sentiment echoes the fundamental democratic creed that the law is supreme, not personalities. If his passion overshot decorum, it was perhaps a reflection of a nation weary of impunity.
On the other hand, the soldier in question is a symbol of another truth: that discipline, respect for order, and duty to hierarchy are ingrained in our armed forces. He may have been caught between conflicting instructions one from his superiors, another from a civilian minister exercising his lawful authority. The confusion points not to personal failure but to institutional dysfunction.
It is, therefore, simplistic to turn the incident into a morality play of good versus evil.
*********”**** What happened was an institutional embarrassment. Both men represented facets of the same failing system a polity still learning how to reconcile authority with civility, law with loyalty, and service with restraint.
In fairness, Wike has shown himself as a man of uncommon courage. Whether in Rivers State or at the FCTA, he does not shy away from confrontation. Yet courage without composure often feeds misunderstanding. A public officer must always be the cooler head, even when provoked, because the power of example outweighs the satisfaction of winning an argument.
Conversely, soldiers, too, must be reminded that their uniforms do not place them above civilian oversight. The military exists to defend the nation, not to enforce property claims or intimidate lawful authorities. Their participation in purely civil matters corrodes the image of the institution and erodes public trust.
One cannot overlook the irony: in a country where kidnappers roam highways and bandits sack villages, armed men are posted to guard contested land in the capital. It reflects misplaced priorities and distorted values. The Nigerian soldier, trained to defend sovereignty, should not be drawn into private or bureaucratic tussles.
Sycophancy remains the greatest ailment of our political culture. Many of those who now cheer one side or the other do so not out of conviction but out of convenience. Tomorrow they will switch allegiance. True patriotism lies not in defending personalities but in defending principles. A people enslaved by flattery cannot nurture a culture of justice.
The Nigerian elite must learn to submit to the same laws that govern the poor. When big men fence off public land and use connections to shield their interests, they mock the very constitution they swore to uphold. The FCT, as the mirror of national order, must not become a jungle where only the powerful can build.
The lesson for Wike himself is also clear: power is best exercised with calmness. The weight of his office demands more than bravery; it demands statesmanship. To lead is not merely to command, but to persuade — even those who resist your authority.
Equally, the lesson for the armed forces is that professionalism shines brightest in restraint. Obedience to illegal orders is not loyalty; it is complicity. The soldier who stands on the side of justice protects both his honour and the dignity of his uniform.
The Presidency, too, must see this episode as a wake-up call to clarify institutional boundaries. If soldiers can be drawn into civil enforcement without authorization, then our democracy remains at risk of subtle militarization. The constitution must speak louder than confusion.
The Nigerian public deserves better than spectacles of ego. We crave leaders who rise above emotion and officers who respect civilian supremacy. Our children must not inherit a nation where authority means shouting matches and intimidation in public glare.
Every democracy matures through such tests. What matters is whether we learn the right lessons. The British once had generals who defied parliament; the Americans once fought over states’ rights; Nigeria, too, must pass through her own growing pains but with humility, not hubris.
If the confrontation has stirred discomfort, then perhaps it has done the nation some good. It forces a conversation long overdue: Who truly owns the state — the citizen or the powerful? Can we build a Nigeria where institutions, not individuals, define our destiny?
As the dust settles, both the FCTA and the military hierarchy must conduct impartial investigations. The truth must be established — not to shame anyone, but to restore order. Where laws were broken, consequences must follow. Where misunderstandings occurred, apologies must be offered.
Let the rule of law triumph over the rule of impulse. Let civility triumph over confrontation. Let governance return to the path of dialogue and procedure.
Nigeria cannot continue to oscillate between civilian bravado and military arrogance. Both impulses spring from the same insecurity — the fear of losing control. True leadership lies in the ability to trust institutions to do their work without coercion.
Those who witnessed the clash saw a drama of two gladiators. One in starched khaki, one in well-cut suit. Both proud, both unyielding. But a nation cannot be built on stubbornness; it must be built on understanding. Power, when it meets power, should produce order, not chaos.
We must resist the temptation to glorify temper. Governance is not warfare; it is stewardship. The citizen watches, the world observes, and history records. How we handle moments like this will define our collective maturity.
The confrontation may have ended without violence, but it left deep questions in the national conscience. When men of authority quarrel in the open, institutions tremble. The people, once again, become spectators in a theatre of misplaced pride.
It is time for all who hold office — civilian or military — to remember that they serve under the same flag. That flag is neither khaki nor political colour; it is green-white-green, and it demands humility.
No victor, no vanquish only a lesson for a nation still learning to govern itself with dignity.
By; King Onunwor
