Train crash: She took staff bus over naira scarcity, says corps member’s dad

Femi Aina, the father to Oreoluwa, the corps member who died in the accident involving a train and a staff bus in Lagos state, has opened up on his daughter’s demise. 

On March 9, a train collided with a Lagos state staff bus conveying workers in the Shogunle area of Oshodi.

The accident left six people — including Oreoluwa — dead while many others sustained varying degrees of injuries.

Until her death, the corps member was serving with the curriculum services department of the Lagos state ministry of education in Alausa, Ikeja.

Speaking with Punch, Aina said his daughter opted for the staff bus due to the naira scarcity in the country.

“I know she boarded the staff bus, but not every day. If not for this cashless nonsense policy, she would not have followed that bus,” he said.

“But she did not have cash, so she had to follow the bus. She had just N200. They just kill people anyhow in this country.”

Aina described his late daughter as “a gift from God”. He added that the corps member, who was buried on Saturday, was very dear to him.

He also revealed that the corps member planned to go for her master’s programme in the UK after her service year.

“Oreoluwa was very dear to me. She was a gift from God to me and that is what her name implies. She feared God and she was hard-working. I used to tell her that she took the job like she was already a staff member of the state government,” he added.

“She was a very nice girl with visions and ambitions. She was preparing to go to the United Kingdom for her Master’s programme after her youth service ends in May, but unfortunately, all her plans had been dashed.

“She happened to be the first grandchild of my parents and she stayed with my mum here in Lagos because our dad passed away last year, so she had always been with her grandmother. She was dear to everyone around including church, school and at work. Her death is a great loss.”