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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has narrated how he escaped the near air mishap involving a private jet he was to fly to Abuja from Lagos, saying he suspects sabotage.
LEADERSHIP Newspaper had reported how the trip the governor was to make on the aircraft of his elder brother, Dr Deji Adeleke, was aborted after the pilot discovered fault in the engine just as it began taxing.
According to the newspaper, the incident occurred at the domestic wing of Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos State.
Speaking about the incident in a statement issued on Sunday by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, the governor said the highly technically equipped aircraft was well maintained with the best technical crew and was never an unused platform where birds could build nests.
“Contrary to the claim by the hangar owner that birds’ nests caused the incident, birds’ nests are made with straws not binding wires as in this case,” he said.
According to him, the near fatal incident was averted shortly after boarding and less than two minutes after the commencement of taxing on the tarmac.
“An early warning noise from the engines immediately prompted the pilots to direct the evacuation of the passengers. Everything happened within five minutes.
“Early reports from the internal investigation indicated sabotage. But the authorities, locally and internationally, are still investigating the incident.
“We, however, want to assure the public that Governor Adeleke and his aides are safe and there was no injury or any outward explosion on the plane,” the statement added.