The Burial picture of Late Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammadu Maccido following his death and other eminent Nigerians

Exclusively by Arewa-online

Oct 30, 2006

Pain, grief and unbelief swept through the nation yesterday, as the spiritual leader of Nigeria’s Muslims and the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammadu Maccido and other eminent Nigerians perished in an Aviation Development Company (ADC) Boeing 737 plane that crashed at Tungan-Maje village near Abuja.

Also confirmed dead in the crash were the deputy-governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Garba Mohammed, and two senators of the Federal Republic, Senator Sule Yari Gandi (Sokoto East) and Senator Badamasi Maccido, the son of the Sultan of Sokoto.
Also on board was the executive director of the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) Alhaji Waisu Yaro, the Sokoto State commissioner for education, Dr. Sanusi Usman Junaid and Alhaji Abdulrahman Shehu Shagari, the son of former President Shehu Shagari.

Out of the 106 passengers and crew members of the ill-fated plane, only seven persons survived the crash and were rushed to the National Hospital, Abuja, for treatment.

As at press time however, one of the survivors, a female, had died, while the remaining six are said to be in a stable condition.

Yesterday’s tragic incident is coming barely six weeks after a generation of Nigerian military generals died in a plane crash in a village in Benue State.

Most of the passengers on the Sokoto-bound plane were from Sokoto State. Late Senator Yari Gandi had his aged mother, wife and three children on board the flight. They all lost their lives. Also, Senator Maccido had his six children on board, who also lost their lives.

Meanwhile, Gov. Attahiru Bafarawa of Sokoto State has declared six days of mourning in honour of the state’s indigenes who died in the ADC plane crash.

In a broadcast in Sokoto, Bafarawa said the state government had received reports that a passenger aircraft heading for Sokoto crashed a few minutes after take off in Abuja.

“On board the aircraft were very important dignitaries from the state, which included the Sultan, Dr. Muhammadu Maccido Abubakar III, the deputy governor, Alhaji Garba Muhammed, and Sen. Sule Yari Gandi,’’ he said. Others were Sen. Badamasi Maccido and the state commissioner for education, Dr Sanusi Usman Junaid.

The governor said: “It is from Allah that we come and it is to him we shall return. “As Muslims, there is nothing we can do than leave everything in the hands of God Almighty who created life and death.

“There is no doubt, this development is tragic and traumatic. It is indeed like a pandemic had occurred in the state,’’ Bafarawa said, adding: ``It is necessary as Muslims to accept whatever God has willed for us. ``We are praying to God to forgive the sins of all those who died in the plan crash, even as we are also praying to Him to grant us the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.’’

The governor said sequel to the development, the state government had set aside six days, beginning from today until Friday for mourning. “We are calling on the people to seize the opportunity offered by the mourning period to pray for forgiveness of the sins of the deceased, and to pray to God to grant their soul perfect peace,’’ he added.

He said that the state government would soon come out with detailed explanation on the incident as soon as it received credible information.