Favour Eosang, the man behind the popular Dexterity Plus event company in Ibadan, in this interview, opens up to Segun Adebayo, revealing his experience of the heart-wrenching tragedy of the Bodija explosion that razed his home and prized possessions.
On that particular day that the explosion happened. Did you have any premonition that such occurrence could happen to you or anyone around you?
No, nothing prepared me for such a terrible experience. Nobody ever thought of that. As a matter of fact, if not because we had a meeting, I would have been at home. Because usually when I closed here at 6:30 pm, I would be in my house by 7 pm. A few days before the incident, we were planning to host Tunde Ednut’s birthday, so he reached out to me that he would be sending some of his representatives to me for a brief meeting. So it was the meeting I was meant to have with the team that delayed me at work on that fateful day. I would have been at home and probably be dead or brought out under the rubble.
All of us were waiting. Me and the key people were waiting. We were up to 20 that were waiting for them so that they would know what’s next. So after a while, the people we were expecting came and we had our meeting about the event.
I escorted them outside. On turning back to come and tell my people what we discussed, I just heard a loud bang. What happened? My people ran out of the reception, telling me that, the frames at the reception fell off and the roof too. Initially, I felt rapture had happened. Because that noise was not something anyone had heard before.
How did you realise that your residence was affected?
Some members of my team were inquisitive and somebody picked my car and drove around. So they went and left me with a few others, only for somebody to say a popular mall in my area was affected. So we now moved towards the mall. At this time, visibility was zero. We couldn’t see anything. it affected me so much that I had to pull my shirt to cover my nose. We got to the mall, and they said it was the estate behind.
So, once the mall was affected, you knew your house must have been hit too?
I lived there so I became a little bit apprehensive. But on getting to the estate, though I couldn’t see properly, I didn’t know my way again. The place I passed through every day, I didn’t know my way into the estate. I was with three of my boys at that time. And some people were like, people are running away from there and you guys are going there. You don’t even know if there’s another blast that is coming up. I just spoke and I said, I’m going to my house. So, they heard my voice and they could recognize my voice and said, ‘Ah, Dexterity, sorry. The house is in a mess, but go.’ I felt devastated when I heard that. But when I got on my clothes, all the houses down. At that time, I could imagine what was happening to me.
We learnt that some of your boys were victims.
Before the explosion, I had sent three of my boys to get stickers and souvenirs from the house. They were working outside the house, but within the compound. Before I got there, they were all bleeding. They were all badly injured by the force of the blast. One of them, the head was open. Another person was injured too, with serious injuries. We took them in for treatment. I’ve spent over 800,000 naira to cater to their medical needs.
What were you able to retrieve from your house?
I couldn’t retrieve anything but it was difficult for me to even navigate the rubbles. I wanted to go get my documents and my passport but it was very difficult. i got my passport but I couldn’t get the documents until the following morning. The place where I usually sat when I got home from work was shattered. Nothing could be taken out. I had about six massive TVs but none could be retrieved. I am an event person. I positioned the place in such that it had five bedrooms but everywhere was shattered.
How do you feel about this incident and the things you have lost?
I just look at it as the will of God because I could have died if I had arrived there five minutes earlier.
What was the first thing that came to your mind?
Thank God, there’s life and I was a bit worried because I had plans but nothing could be done about that. So I was really worried. I was worried because one of my staff members was in the building. It was a hopeless situation.
How have you been coping with your life?
God will always do it so that there will still be avenues for you to give thanks. I’ve been sleeping in the office. It’s been crazy. Can you imagine? Coming from living in a mansion to sleeping in your store room at work. Thank God I am alive; otherwise, the story would have been different. Before I could navigate to go and get my documents, we had to bring carpenters. it wasn’t easy. Before we went back the following morning, guys had gone there to vandalize our homes.
How close was your house to the scene of the incident?
One house away. The people living inside the house where the explosion happened were my neighbors. One house away.
Did you know something like that was happening in the house? Did you know that they had explosives like that in the house?
This is how I am going to answer that question: Anybody that is selling fabrics will always have fabrics at home. Anybody that sells flowers will have flowers at home. I think at some point. Maybe not too big but it was sheer carelessness.
What sort of help are you looking to get from the government?
The governor has come. He has made promises. Even the governor’s wife put a call through.
How has this affected the Dexterity brand?
It has affected me a great deal because I am not stable. I can’t constantly stay in the office. They have to go and get somewhere. Because if you are settled back home, then work will go on fine. If you are distorted back home, work will be affected.
Do you still think about that night when you are alone?
You can’t stop thinking about those things because you are human. So I was ten minutes away from disaster. So I was five minutes away. What if it had happened?
How are you adjusting to this new life?
It’s not the kind of lifestyle I’m used to and, what if anything had happened to somebody’s health?
What about your neighbours? I mean, the people in your area. Have you been getting along?
There’s a neighbour of mine that, I was just trying to check up on him. Only for somebody to tell me that they found out that he died two days after the explosion. I had somebody at the boy’s quarters. He told me that when he came back from work, he discovered that there was no food at home. He had forgotten. So he just left the door open and quickly went to Ultima. So on coming back, he just heard the bang and the buildings crashed.
Do you think you can get over this trauma?
People are shattered and some people can’t remain the same for the rest of their lives. A lot of dreams have been shattered. The estate has the data of people living there. And it was not everybody that was affected. People that were like 50 meters, 500 meters close to the scene. Mine was not even up to 25 or 250 metres.
But do you think you need help as of now? Myself? Even before this thing happened, I needed help. So, now that it has happened, do you think I don’t need help? I do. But I can’t start saying I need help on the streets to everyone.
Did Tunde Ednut speak to you after that incident?
Oh, he did and sent messages. That was the way of telling my people that we appreciate all of you. I appreciate what you have been doing. We ought to have done his show, but the whole of December was booked for us. That’s why we moved it to January. So now, they are telling me that we have to turn it to Thanksgiving. Every January.
The brand Dexterity is quite big in Ibadan. Do you think you have the capacity to carry that name for the next 10 years?
Why not? Even beyond. It is going to be way bigger very soon. I mean because of what has happened to me. Let me tell you something. People call me from where I live. You see, when God wants to set things right, He will throw things apart. So, I think God is involved. He has reasons for it.
You don’t want to tell us what you lost to that incident?
I lost a lot and I can’t really put a figure to it. I lost my truck, televisions and other valuables but I thank God, I didn’t lose my life.
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