PANAPRESS
Panafrican News Agency
Nigeria: Govt. institutes coroner’s inquest over Church building collapse
Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - The Lagos state government, in south west Nigeria, said it has instituted a Coroner’s Inquest under the state law for the purpose of establishing the cause of the collapsed guest house building at the premises of the Synagogue Church of All Nations two weeks ago.
According to a statement from the state ministry of Justice, made available to PANA here Saturday, the inquest was instituted by the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Ade Ipaye, under section 15 of the Coroner Law.
The section provides that a Coroner shall hold an inquest whenever he is informed that the death of a person lying within his Coroner District was as a result of a violent, unnatural or suspicious occurrence.
Close to 90 people died when the guest house in the Synagogue church, located in the outskirts of the commercial city of Lagos, collapsed on Friday 12 September.
The bulk of those who lost their lives were citizens of South Africa. Scores of other people also sustained several levels of injuries from the rumbles.
The coroner has extensive powers to investigate the cause and circumstances of death. It also has the power to bring his findings and recommendations to the attention of appropriate authorities.
"In doing this, he (Coroner) has all the powers of a magistrate to summon and compel the attendance of witnesses, including medical examiners, and require them to give evidence, produce documents or present other relevant materials," the statement explained.
The Law requires the verdict of a Coroner as certified in writing to be forwarded to the State Attorney General and such verdict may form the basis of criminal prosecutions depending on the evidence collected.
Magistrate O. A. Komolafe has been appointed as the Coroner by the state government. Mr. Komolafe also sat as Coroner in the Dana Air Crash case.
He is expected to announce his sitting/visitation schedules and other details and to hold the inquest at the premises of the High Court of Lagos State, Ikeja.
Meanwhile, the state Health Commissioner, Dr. Jide Idris, has called on family members and all nationals who believe their relations could have been in the collapsed building to visit the Department of Forensic Medicine at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja, to submit samples for the forensic identification and Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) analysis.
Those eligible to give samples for the forensic identification and DNA analysis in order of preference include: parents, children and siblings of the deceased.
The examination is for proper documentation of the deceased, in line with international best practices, as well as to ensure that each body is delivered to the appropriate family for burial.
-0- PANA SB/VAO 27Sept2014
According to a statement from the state ministry of Justice, made available to PANA here Saturday, the inquest was instituted by the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Ade Ipaye, under section 15 of the Coroner Law.
The section provides that a Coroner shall hold an inquest whenever he is informed that the death of a person lying within his Coroner District was as a result of a violent, unnatural or suspicious occurrence.
Close to 90 people died when the guest house in the Synagogue church, located in the outskirts of the commercial city of Lagos, collapsed on Friday 12 September.
The bulk of those who lost their lives were citizens of South Africa. Scores of other people also sustained several levels of injuries from the rumbles.
The coroner has extensive powers to investigate the cause and circumstances of death. It also has the power to bring his findings and recommendations to the attention of appropriate authorities.
"In doing this, he (Coroner) has all the powers of a magistrate to summon and compel the attendance of witnesses, including medical examiners, and require them to give evidence, produce documents or present other relevant materials," the statement explained.
The Law requires the verdict of a Coroner as certified in writing to be forwarded to the State Attorney General and such verdict may form the basis of criminal prosecutions depending on the evidence collected.
Magistrate O. A. Komolafe has been appointed as the Coroner by the state government. Mr. Komolafe also sat as Coroner in the Dana Air Crash case.
He is expected to announce his sitting/visitation schedules and other details and to hold the inquest at the premises of the High Court of Lagos State, Ikeja.
Meanwhile, the state Health Commissioner, Dr. Jide Idris, has called on family members and all nationals who believe their relations could have been in the collapsed building to visit the Department of Forensic Medicine at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja, to submit samples for the forensic identification and Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) analysis.
Those eligible to give samples for the forensic identification and DNA analysis in order of preference include: parents, children and siblings of the deceased.
The examination is for proper documentation of the deceased, in line with international best practices, as well as to ensure that each body is delivered to the appropriate family for burial.
-0- PANA SB/VAO 27Sept2014
