Explosions rock Yenagoa

21 January 2012, Sweetcrude, Yenagoa – Two explosions have rocked Yenagoa, the home state of President Goodluck Jonathan, but no casualties have been reported, the governor’s office and the military said Saturday.

The explosions came on the heels of coordinated bomb attacks and gunfire that hit the city of Kano, leaving at least 24 people dead.

In his reaction to the blasts, the Bayelsa state governor indicated the Yenagoa blasts were linked to upcoming governorship elections.

A a statement from his office said that Governor Timipre Sylva has just been informed of two explosions that rocked parts of Yenagoa, the Bayelsa state capital, late Friday night.

A spokesman for a military task force in the region said there had been no casualties.

“The (joint task force) confirms that there were dynamite explosions in certain parts of Yenagoa city yesterday. However, there was no casualty,” Lieutenant Colonel Timothy Antigha said.

Bayelsa state — the home state of the president, located in the oil-producing Niger Delta region — is preparing for a contentious February 11 governorship election.

Campaign periods have often provoked such incidents in the delta.