Oyo State Government has given 72 hours ultimatum to individuals and corporate organisations in possession of harmful or dangerous substances, to report them or face the wrath of the law.
It said anyone with harmful substances, even if he had licence to hold them either from the Office of the National Security Adviser, from the Ministry of Mines or from anywhere, had a duty to notify the Special Adviser to the Governor on Security so that the government would be sure such storage would not endanger the lives of others around.
The dangerous substances, according to the government, include harmful items that can qualify as weapon of mass destruction.
“Failure to do so will amount to disobedience and negligence of the government directive, which attracts the same sanction as criminal offences, as provided for in the criminal laws of the state.
“Further sanctions for defaulters will also be determined by the gravity or extent of damage caused by the negligence.”
The government said the call is imperative in view of the recent explosion that rocked Bodija area of Ibadan, which was caused by illegal storage by illegal miners operating in the state.
The directive and sanctions form part of the provisions of the newly-signed Executive Order 001, 2024 signed into law by Governor Seyi Makinde yesterday.
In a brief remark shortly before the signing of the order, the governor said the move became imperative in the light of the unfortunate incident at Bodija where explosives were stored in a residential area.
He said with the new law, such an incident would never reoccur.
Giving details of the provision during a visit to the epicentre of the incident, Commissioner for Justice and Attorney-General, Abiodun Aikomo, said the new law is not just about storage of explosives, but many other harmful substances that can qualify as weapon of mass destruction.
He said storing gas in a way that is irresponsible can trigger explosion.
“It will become harmful and will have the same dangerous consequence that is negative to human existence.”
Aikomo said: “The governor signed an Executive Order to deal with storage and handling of harmful substances. We are not talking about explosives here because explosives are on the exclusive list. But there are many other harmful substances that can qualify as weapon of mass destruction.
“If you store gas for example in a way that is irresponsible, that it can trigger explosion, it becomes harmful and it will have the same dangerous consequences that is negative to human existence.
“What this order has done is to say, the government, not being super human, cannot know what people have stored in their homes. Anybody, any company or individual that is in possession of harmful substances stored in residential houses should notify the state government of the possession of such substances and this obligation takes effect immediately.
“So, they are required to report within the next 72 hours to the Special Adviser to the Governor on Security. So, the SA will now organise for evacuation in a safe and decent manner, working with other law enforcement agencies.”
“And going forward, anyone who has harmful substances in Oyo State, it doesn’t matter even if you have licence to hold it, you may have been licensed from the Office of the National Security Adviser, from the Ministry of Mines or from anywhere, you have a duty to notify the SA to the Governor, so that we are sure you are not endangering the lives of other people around you and this will be on until such a time when the governor revokes the Executive Order.”
He added: “Now, because laws by their nature are commands, they are to be obeyed. If the governor issues an Executive Order and people decide or choose either to obey or not, then it is not worth the signing.
“So, anybody who refuses to comply or obey would have violated the criminal laws of Oyo State and the criminal laws of Oyo State have criminalised negligent handling of harmful substances of explosives.
“If it occasions death, it is punishable by death because it is murder. So, it depends on the degree of consequence that follows. We have tied this Executive Order to the Criminal Laws of Oyo State and Under Chapter 38. There are different categories of offences, which may be implicated by negligent handling of dangerous substances.”