We are told the aircraft owned by Bellview airlines was said to be in perfect condition having done the D or is it C checks required, although it was said the craft had developed minor fault which some say was the reason why the plane left slightly late in the first place, this though has been refuted by the owners of the plane not that one expected absolute truth from them.

It is sheer madness that it took over 14 hours for the exact position of the crash to be located, first we were informed of the plane having crashed into the Atlantic, later it was in Kisi in Oyo State bordering Kwara State. With Navy helicopters and boats, the Police and all the agencies involved, it was strange that no one could give out any accurate information for a plane that had barely left Lagos. All the agencies involved could hardly put into place an information desk; childishly a notice was put at the Bellview office stating that a plane was missing (one marvels if a plane is a small kite).

It was just a show of shame as airline officials were battling with themselves to lie to the public, the Federal Civil Aviation Authority, the Ministry of Aviation, National Emergency Management Agency were giving out conflicting reports, from the Atlantic to Kisi in Irepo Local Government to Moshi-Gada in Kaiama L.G.A. The show was a complete display of ineptitude involving top government officials and parastatals all running in no direction.

Infact at a point the Police Helicopter search party even reportedly claimed to have sighted the plane intact. The period at which this drama was occurring was enough for any survivor to have died of bleeding, as our leaders ran from pillar to post in absolute confusion.

There was no central information system, questioning Nigeria’s ability on search and rescue mission. The Airline itself Bellview had no functional website where relatives could access information. In a moment of foolishness one of the airline’s official was stressing that the aircraft was insured and that the families of the deceased would be accordingly compensated, narrowing people’s lives to money. The entire nation was at loss as to the exact true position. It is an undeniable fact that the powers that be has again, like they do all the time, failed. While monitoring the conflicting reports from both local and international media, it is a pity that even the Information Minister was ‘lying’ or at best playing propaganda that the President (who at the point was mourning his wife) was coordinating the search and rescue. This was not possible because even the Minister himself confirmed that the site was yet to be ascertained. Foreign media at this point were already speculating about survivors. This only went further to heighten tension as our leaders were showing their worth for human lives especially the citizenry.

In the last months so much noise has been said of our satellite communication. How it helped the Tsunami and Hurricane Katrina but cannot locate an aircraft that crashed. Fuelling speculations that the launch of the satellites was for Western interest and also the committing of all the millions of Dollars to our satellite communication is merely a political statement rather than need.

For 14 whole hours we were guessing while the lives of 117 were not accounted for. It is unheard of that, a whole plane would go missing like a small GSM phone, there is just something about the truth that scares us. Days after this crash nobody has taken the pains within government circles to really say something tangible. The President’s speech Tuesday morning was just drab, empty and to no effect. It is the pathetic story. In 14 hours we are still talking of search and rescue when indeed any survivor might have bled to death.

The National Emergency Management Authority was nowhere to be found. The authorities concerned were busy already passing the buck, everyone was evading the press and the public tension was simply high. The giant of Africa was sleeping, a nation that expectedly should be the hub nub of air activities but we do not even have full radar coverage of the nation.

Even when AIT/ Raypower took the bull by the horn locating the crash site and immediate coverage of the site, the NBC welded its big hammer and put the broadcast house off air. The Nigeria Television Authority was battling with prominence and common good, the first lady’s death being that of prominence while the Bellview Aircraft crash was of common good. The reportage of the privately owned AIT/Raypower was a characteristic first as the NTA was busy playing lip service at the crash while focusing on the first lady’s death.

On NTA’s part this was bad, much as I do not subscribe to speaking evil of the dead, I hope the speculations are not right that she went to do "fine girl looking sexy’ cosmetic surgery (the in-thing for government thieves). Because as of today no one has said exactly what form of surgery for a woman that was hale and hearty, with speculations that most of her personal aides were not aware that she had traveled out of Abuja much more far away Spain. The Ambassador of Spain to Nigeria at least confirmed that the First woman went for ‘personal runs’

The allegation of professional misconduct against the station by the NBC was simply political and sparked of jealousy at the ingenuity and successes of AIT. The closure was done without the consent of the Information Minister, so the Minister claimed giving the impression that this government is a leadership of anyhow and anything goes.

I cannot at this point fathom whether our aviation industry is run by ‘goats’ (pardon me). The professionals in the sector should have known better, as the initial impression was that off naivety as no one could hold his own and give an enlightened insight into exactly what happened. In those 7 hours no one heard from the President who in this time could only have come out to show that despite his own grief he was truly the nation’s father. One wonders what really is the problem with Nigeria, why is everything we do different.

The President is now calling for a full investigation into the crash, asking that the manufacturers of the aircraft and international aviation experts to help in unraveling the cause of the air mishap. Forensic and technical experts from outside the country have been flying in to come and exhume human parts and examine the plane’s scattered parts. The House of Representatives has as usual ordered a probe.

All the National Civil Aviation Authority could do was reel out technical jargons like the plane crashed 16 Nautical miles from Lagos, 24,000 and 13,000 feet this and that. If it was bothered about statistics, it should have let Nigerians why we do not have information regarding how many hours the pilot of the airplane has flown in the last one month, has he exceeded the maximum 100 hours per month? Was the pilot well rested, why was there no radar coverage? Did the pilot send a distress call? Why was it that a it was a broadcast house that got to the crash site first?

What role did the Nigerian Airspace Management Authority play? 117 families would not see bodies of their loved ones. The crash scene has been condoned off by jobless security agents while we wait for the all knowing, all problem solving oyinbos to come and tell us how a big bird flew into thin air and suddenly appeared a wreck shattered into pieces.

The Minister of Aviation Prof. Borishade is saying the black box has not been found, the Inspector General stated it had been found by his men and handed over to the Investigation team, which investigation team only God knows, because the Accident Investigation and Prevention Bureau does not have it.

In Nigeria cattle run onto the air tarmac, in Nigeria we wait for construction giant Julius Berger to deploy its equipment each time there is a disaster, because we have a comatose fire service and a non existent disaster management organ.

A condolence register was immediately opened for the First lady and none for the 117 plane crash victims. The President’s wife would enjoy a state burial, while the victims of the plane crash will have their mangled bodies rotting away.

God help us if tomorrow we have a Tsunami, a hurricane, an earthquake, the entire nation would be wiped out, because the response we saw its shot of being disgraceful. Watching the whole episode it was another slap on our collective psyche and shame on leadership, it also showed the value the government placed on its citizens. As the days unfold we will hear more of the crash and may the truth be told at least for the last time.