At least one person has died, with three others injured, in a tanker explosion on the Otedola Bridge in Lagos.

The tanker, laden with Premium Motor Spirit popularly known as petrol, burst into flames on Tuesday night, a situation that forced residents and motorists to scamper for safety.

The Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, confirmed the casualty figure in a statement.

“Three adult male victims with severe burns have been rescued and transferred to Gbagada General Hospital burns unit while the remains of an adult male were also recovered.

“All hands remain on deck to extinguish the flames. Motorists are urged to take alternative routes where possible,” Oke-Osanyintolu said.

Earlier, Oke-Osanyintolu said the agency’s Tiger Response Team was on the scene working to bring the situation under control.

He added that the road has been cordoned off, urging motorists to take alternative routes.

In the same vein, the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, confirmed the accident in a statement.

LASTMA, in a post on X, said the fire affected nearby structures, including a church, residential house, and mechanics’ parks at Otedola under bridge, adjacent to CMD Road, adding that emergency responders were on ground to handle the situation.

“A tanker has fallen and caught fire, affecting nearby structures, including a church, residential house, and mechanics’ parks at Otedola Under Bridge, adjacent to CMD Road,” the statement read.

On May 28, Mr. Karl Toriola, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD/CEO) of MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, would be arraigned by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC).
In violation of the FCCPC Act, Toriola, MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, and others will be charged for allegedly failing to provide the commission with the information and documents it requested in response to a valid summons. Justice H.J. Yilwa of the Federal High Court in Abuja will arraign the firm and its CEO with Tobechukwu Okigbo, MTN’s Chief Corporate Services and Sustainability Officer, and Ikenna Ikeme, MTN’s General Manager, Regulatory Affairs.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, Toriola, Okigbo, and Ikeme were identified as the first, second, and fourth suspects, respectively, in the charge designated FHC/ABJ/CR/354/2024 by the FCCPC.

BrandSpur telecoma and information news reports that a group of attorneys led by Akoji Achimugu preferred the suspects with two counts in the charge, which was dated July 19, 2024, and filed July 22, 2024. They weren’t in court when the matter was called. Justice Yilwa questioned Chizenum Nsitem, an FCCP attorney, about the suspects’ location. Nsitem told the court that even though the arraignment of the defendants was the scheduled event, he had only been briefed on the case and would require additional time to review the case file. For arraignment, the judge postponed the case until May 28.

According to NAN, the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) had previously charged MTN Nigeria Communications Ltd., its CEO Toriola, MTN Senior Executive Officer Nkeakam Abhulimen, telecommunications service provider Fun Mobile Ltd., and its CEO Yahaya Maibe. On March 20, 2024, the NCC filed the three-count accusation, which is currently before sister court Justice Inyang Ekwo and is marked FHC/ABJ/CR/111/2024.

Also read: https://brandspurng.com/2025/03/07/shettima-other-prominent-nigerians-attend-first-banks-40-storey-headquarter-launch-in-lagos/

Between 2010 and 2017, the defendants were accused by the prosecution of: “Offered for sale, sold and traded for business, infringed musical works of Maleke Moye, an artiste, without his consent and authorisation.”

Continuing, the commission said that the defendants have utilized Maleke’s sound recordings and musical compositions, known as “caller ring back tunes,” which are protected by copyright, without the artist’s consent. Among the musician’s allegedly infringed musical compositions and sound recordings are “911, Minimini-Wana Wana, Stop Racism, Ewole, 911 instrumental, Radio, Low Waist, and No Bother.”

In violation of the artist’s rights, they were also accused of unlawfully and without permission distributing the musical compositions to their subscribers. The third count claimed that the suspects possessed the artist’s sound recordings and musical compositions in their hands unless they were being used for domestic or personal purposes. Section 20 (2) (a) (b) and (c) of the Copyright Act, Cap. C28, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, are the penalties for the claimed offence, according to the copyright commission.

On February 25, Justice Ekwo postponed the case till May 15 for reporting after the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) expressed interest in taking over.

Following the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) statement in early January 2025 that manufacturing sector in Nigeria recorded unsold goods accumulated to a total of N1.4trillion, which was attributed to inflationary pressures and declining consumer purchasing power, the organisers of The Industry Summit, The Industry Newspaper has designed the sixth edition of the summit to address the consumer preferences in a troubled fast moving consumer goods (FMCG).

Announcing the 2025 theme: “Understanding Changing Consumer Preferences in Troubled FMCG’s Space”, the convener of The Industry Summit & Awards (TIES), Goddie Ofose stated that the dwindling purchasing power of consumers as become one of the major reasons that manufacturing sector declared heavy inventory loss in 2024, and organisations must design innovative approach to tackling this menace in 2025.

According to him, “Inflationary impact is real and it has continued to dig some holes in the pockets of consumers, which in turn results in consumers’ preferences. Manufacturers must adapt to the shifting consumer preferences if they must survive,” he added.

Ofose revealed that the organisers have selected Dr. Obinna Ike, chief executive officer/managing director of NigerBev Limited as the chairman of the event while Mr. Lampe Omoyele, managing director of Nitro 121 Limited will deliver a keynote paper on the theme.

Also lined up as guest speakers are Mrs. Toyin Nnodi, former marketing director of CHI Limited, Mr. Stanley Obi, immediate past Prime Business Director at Grand Oak/Co-founder/CEO of Innova Hive Integrated and Mr. Anthony Eigbe, Vice President, Creative & Communications, UAC Nigeria Plc.

He said, “We have carefully selected the 2025 members of faculty who possess vast experience in product innovation, marketing, advertising, brand management, distribution value chain and communication that would look at these issues dispassionately and proffer solutions to this new market challenge.”

This year’s programme, which is scheduled for Friday, May 2, 2025 for lecture and Saturday, May 3, 2025 for dinner and awards, will also feature a panel session. The panel members include Mr. Ayo Awosika, GM, Commercial, UAC Foods, Mr. Remi Akanda, Director, Marketing & Corporate Communications, LAPO Microfinance Bank, Mr. Adeola Amosun – Group Media Manager, Tolaram, Mr. Gbemileke Lawal, Marketing Manager, Grand Oak Limited, and Ms. Oluseun Mudashiru, Brand Manager- Big Bull Rice, TGI Group.

Others are Mrs. Roseline Abaraonye, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), N.N. Fems Group, and Mrs. Ifeoluwa Esther Obafemi, Head, Digital, Media & Insights (Digital Transformation), Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), FrieslandCampina WAMCO while Ms. Gift Uche-Ewule, Assistant Brand Manager, Indomie will the moderate the session.

The 2025 event is a two day programme with lecture taking place at Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, Victoria Island on Friday May 2 and dinner & awards to be held on Saturday May 3, 2025 at Civic Centre, Victoria Island.

In 2024, Nigerian manufacturers recorded an accumulation of N1.4 trillion worth of unsold goods, attributed to inflation, diminishing consumer purchasing power, and a surge in electricity tariffs.