Controversy has been sparked following the unveiling by the Lagos State government of a cenotaph at the site of the crash of Dana Air 9J977 at Iju-Ishaga in Lagos in which the names of the crew were omitted and a poorly built, mangled aircraft model used to replicate the doomed McDonnell Douglas MD83. The disaster, which occurred on June 3 last year, claimed the lives of all 153 passengers on-board with a further 10 on the ground.
According to PM News Nigeria, Dana Air has said the names of the pilot, Captain Peter Waxton, the co-pilot, Mahendra Rathore, Engineer Widyo Utomo as well as flight attendants; Onyinye Mgbangwa, Vivienne Atangakak, Uche Ulasi and Eke Godwin are not on the cenotaph. While the plaque does contain 156 names many have been left bamboozled as to where the government got other names to arrive at the full number of 156 when the names of the seven Dana staff members are not there.
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| The wall of rememberance (willinross) |
Human rights groups have also expressed concern over the broken plane on the cenotaph, saying it portrays air travel in Nigeria as unsafe and sends a negative message to children in Iju-Ishaga where the crash occurred.
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| The crass monument (willinross) |
Meanwhile, investigations into the cause of the crash are nearing completion with four interim recommendations already being made, Nigeria’s Accident Investigation Bureau, AIB, has said. Initial speculation pointed to fuel starvation of the engines as the primary factor.
