..As Buhari, UN Mourns
Yemisi Izuora
Two Nigerians are among 157 passengers aboard the ill fated Ethiopian Airline 320 that crashed on Sunday.
The crashed aircraft was en route from Addis Ababa to Nairobi with 149 passengers and eight crew on board.
An official of the airline who preferred anonymity said that Amb. Abiodun Bashua and Prof. Pius Adesanmi were two Nigerians that have their identity confirmed in the crash.
”Prof. Pius Adesanmi was carrying a Canadian passport.
”The other Nigerian had a UN passport.
” I’ve just been informed now that we lost a high profile Nigerian, Amb. Abiodun Bashua in that crash.
”Bashua was the former UN and AU Deputy Joint Special Representative in Darfur, Sudan. A complete gentleman. May God rest his soul,” the official said.
A source from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also confirmed that Bashua was on board of the ill-fated flight.
The source added that Bashua was a retired Ambassador and on contract with United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).
President Muhammadu Buhari and the United Nations have commiserated with the families of the dead.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr Geoffrey Onyeama has condoled the families of Amb. Bashua and Prof. Adesanmi
The Airline Management said in a statement that an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 crashed on Sunday morning en route from Addis Ababa to Nairobi with 149 passengers and eight crew believed to be on board.
“We hereby confirm that our scheduled flight ET 302 from Addis Ababa to Nairobi was involved in an accident today,” the airline said.