By Ruth Oginyi
The body of All Progressives Congress, (APC) Youth Leader in Ebonyi State, Comrade Ogochukwu Elem and two Police Officers whose car plunged into a mining pit along Enyigba, Ikwo/FUNAI road on Saturday have been recovered and evacuated to the mortuary.
Late Ogochukwu was also a Senior Legislative Aide to the member, representing Ikwo/ Ezza South Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Chinedu Ogah.
He was equally a journalist who worked with the Ebonyi State Broadcasting Corporation but resigned from his reportorial duties to serve his master, Chinedu Ogah.
The sad incident occurred around 3: pm on the said day. Ogochukwu’s Golf car skidded off the road and plunged into the pit which is by the roadside.
The mining pit which has existed for over 20 years, is about 25meters deep.
The report has it that former governor of the State Martin Elechi had closed down the pit but it was allegedly opened for another mining business after he left the office.
The Youth Leader and the two police escorts attached to him were traveling on Saturday from Abakaliki to Ikwo when the accident happened.
The decomposing bodies of the victims were pulled from the pit through combined efforts of a crane supplied by the state ministry of infrastructure and local divers hired from different parts of Ikwo and across the river.
The Golf car which the victims were driving in was also pulled from the pit.
The State Governor David Umahi was on hand to aid the search and rescue operations.
A visibly angry governor Umahi condemned the activities of miners who excavate the mining pits indiscriminately thereby endangering the lives of the people and destroying the environment.
He said his government will set up a committee to look into the issue warning that from henceforth his administration will not tolerate such practice from miners in the state.
“We learned of the unfortunate incident of an accident here on this road that was on Saturday. The accident is still a mystery to all of us, that was the APC Youth Leader with some policemen that were going for a function and the accident happened.
“We do not know the cause of the accident, we do not know what happened but it’s quite very mysterious how it happened that even the wages of the sand could not stop them and the small-vehicle plunged into a pit that was dug over 20 years and not closed.
“It is very unfortunate and we have been fighting this issue of digging pits, harvesting lead, zinc, and chippings without closing it back. We have been fighting with miners in Ebonyi state over this issue. And so, the Chief of Staff is here who also doubles as the Commissioner for Solid Mineral.
“We are going to identify all the pits in Ebonyi state whether it was drugged for lead, for zinc, for shipping, or any other mineral in Ebonyi state. We have to identify who did it and then the closing of these pits must commence latest by next week Monday”, he said.