President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday vowed that firm actions will be taken against any clear dereliction of duty, if authorities at Dana Air are found culpable in the plane crash that occurred over the weekend.

The president made this known at a special session of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in honour of the victims of the Dana Air crash directed that the ‘fullest possible’ investigation should be undertaken to unravel the remote and immediate causes of the crash with a view to ensure that the proper lessons are learnt from it.

He also called for every necessary measure to be effectively implemented in order to enhance the safety of air travellers in the country.

Dana Air’s Flight 0992, crashed into a residential building in Lagos, as it approached the local wing of the Murtala Mohammed Airport.

The president who visited the site of the crash on Monday, shed a tear as he witnessed the devastation caused by the crash which claimed close to 160 lives of people on board and residents in the affected building.

Engine failure

The plane that crashed on Sunday, killing all 153 people on board, called the control tower to report dual engine failure shortly before crashing, the Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah, revealed in her briefing with state house correspondent after the FEC meeting.

“It was shortly after the captain’s distress call that the aircraft could no longer be seen in the radar and communication was lost” she said.

The president however urged that there should be no rush to judgement as the lives of all Nigerians and foreigners are precious to the administration and that he will do everything possible to protect lives and prevent avoidable deaths.

He also reaffirmed the commitment of the administration to take actions to prevent the recurrence of air mishaps and the improvement in the quality of the aviation infrastructure in the country with the overall goal of making air travel safer.

President Jonathan also assured Nigerians and the international community that the investigations he has ordered will be very thorough.

A minute silence was observed for the departed souls and almost all the Ministers took turns to commiserate with families of the victims, as well as share their views on what should be done to avoid such disasters.