Ogun Assembly has summoned environment commissioner Ola Oresanya and relevant agencies to appear on 28 October over suspected gas emissions that sent schoolchildren to hospital. The decision follows another episode across parts of Ijebuland on Wednesday, 21 October.
Speaker Daisi Elemide announced the invitation during the House’s sitting on Thursday, 22 October. The Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency and other relevant bodies are also expected to attend under the resolution announced by Elemide.
The invitation followed a report by Odogbolu constituency representative Lukman Adeleye. He called for officials to explain measures to prevent further incidents and identify where additional support was needed. The proposed appearance will bring the environmental response before state lawmakers.
The latest episode affected schools in Ijebu-Ode, Ijebu-Igbo and Ago-Iwoye. Radio Nigeria reported disruption at Anglican Girls Grammar School in Obalende, Ijebu-Ode, and Ijebu-Igbo Girls Grammar School. Some schools in Ago-Iwoye sent pupils home after the unusual odour was detected.
Punch reported that more than 100 pupils were taken to hospitals across the affected towns. The state government’s assessment account described more than 30 students attended to at one hospital. That account was confined to the facility visited by the assessment team.
The government’s 21 October statement said symptoms reported by affected pupils included shortness of breath, stomach disorders and drowsiness. Some required oxygen, while others received less intensive treatment. Most had been discharged when the assessment team left, although a few remained under observation at that stage.
Officials also inspected school premises and surrounding areas. The odour was reported beyond school grounds, including at the Ijebu North council secretariat. A team from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission joined the assessment, according to the statement.
Oresanya has separately promised reimbursement for families who paid private hospitals to treat affected children. Speaking on Eagle 102.5 FM’s Frontline programme, in an interview reported by The Guardian on 22 October, he said treatment in public hospitals was being provided at government expense.
He said parents who used private facilities could submit their medical bills through a local government control room. The commissioner described a reimbursement arrangement without specifying when payments would begin. His comments did not identify a public telephone number for submitting claims or set out the documents required beyond medical bills.
The commissioner said researchers from Olabisi Onabanjo University and relevant federal technical agencies were investigating the gas’s origin. He described work to establish whether it came from a shallow underground reservoir or a deeper formation.
The October incident follows earlier episodes affecting schools in the area since April. In June, Oresanya and health commissioner Tomi Coker discussed the recurring emissions with parents, school heads and development partners. Officials then attributed the gases to natural underground processes associated with geological fault lines. On 1 April, at least 30 pupils at Our Lady of Apostles Secondary School in Ijebu-Ode were hospitalised after a suspected gas leak.
That earlier explanation does not settle the findings of the October investigation. The source and extent of the latest emissions remain under examination. The agencies have been asked to appear before the Assembly on Wednesday, 28 October.
Archive portrait: Tarahphotos, Ola Oresanya, 21 August 2023, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. It does not show the October incident or a legislative hearing.
