Date: 2020-07-05

President-General, Igbo Community Association in Kwara State, Chief Boniface Okeke, tells TUNDE OYEKOLA how miscreants allegedly demanded money before the corpses of the late Okechukwu Nwagboo, aka Ajayi, who died in the Oko-Erin bridge collapse, was released

How did you receive the news of Nwagboo's death?

It was very early on that day that people called me that some of our members were involved in the accident at the Oko-Erin Bridge. They told me their car fell into a river and that three of them were swept away by the erosion. When we got there, we hired some local divers, in addition to the men of the state fire service, to search for their corpses. In the morning of Sunday, June 14, 2020, a body was discovered not far from the place where the incident happened, but some miscreants said that they would not allow us to carry the corpse. It was a serious tragedy to the Igbo community. In fact, since my over 40-year stay in Kwara, I have not seen such a tragedy that claimed three lives instantly.

What then did you do when the miscreants refused to allow you to carry the corpse?

I headed for the Nigeria Police 'B' Division in Surulere, in Ilorin, to meet the Divisional Police Officer. From there, we were advised to meet the Magaji Oko-Erin. The miscreants demanded that we pay the sum of N200,000 to them before they could release the corpse of our kinsman to us. The Magaji even told us that since the man died in the river, he should be buried near the river. But I told him that the man didn't die in the river. It is an erosion path which will soon dry off if there is no rain in two or three days' time. I told him that we are Igbo and we have a tradition. If not for the coronavirus that caused the state borders to be closed, we should have taken the corpses to our states. Right now, we have up to 30 corpses in the mortuary at the University of Ilorin and we have appealed to the authority not to give them a mass burial. We are constantly in touch with our state governments so that as soon as the borders are open, we will take the corpses to the respective states for burial. Meanwhile, to satisfy the Magaji, we paid N25,000 and the corpses were released to us and we have taken them to the mortuary.

How will you describe the late Okechukwu?

Although, I don't know him much, he was a very generous man and he was a detribalised Nigerian. He was popularly referred to as Mr Ajayi but he was an Igbo man from Ozumohu, Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State. In fact, it was his generosity that made me know him. I would have asked them to open the face when I was called on getting to where the water swept him to. His death is a great loss to the entire Igbo race in the state. We love him very well but God loves him more because it was an act of God. If their death had been caused by any human being, we would have shown people that we are ready to sacrifice our lives in protest against the act. Honestly, we are in mourning mood. This is a national disaster for the Igbo.

Why did the miscreants demand money from you?

The incident happened on Saturday night, June 13, 2020, and we discovered the corpse the following day. By Monday, through the assistance of divers, we discovered the corpses of his two apprentices. It was the area boys that discovered the dead body of the late Okechukwu. Those area boys did not want us to carry the corpse but demanded N200,000 before the corpse would be released. Eventually, we paid N25,000 before the Magaji of the area allowed the corpse to be released to us. That is too bad.

A In fact, the most painful aspect was that one of the boys that died with him had completed his apprenticeship. He was supposed to have being 'settled' during the Easter period, lockdown caused by coronavirus prevented it . I learnt there were three boys at the back and the most senior boy beside the driver (the late Okechukwu). The three boys at the back escaped when the vehicle fell off the bridge. But when one of them saw the way their master was struggling inside the water, he went back apparently to rescue him. But the water also swept him away. That was why we had three casualties. The boy who did that was sent to the late Okechukwu last year. The boy's father is in Ilorin.

What is your association doing about the burial?

Every preparation for late Okechukwu's burial will be dependent on the Federal Government's relaxation of interstate travel. Currently, the Igbo community in the state has over 30 corpses at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital. This death at Oko-Erin is of interest to us because of the circumstances surrounding the incident. So we are waiting for signals from the villages of the deceased before we will move the corpse. Apart from interstate restriction, we want to know the number of people the Anambra State Government will allow to participate in the burials.

The corpses of the two boys will be taken home with that of their master. We are likely going to do that at the same time as they are all from Anambra State, though from different local government areas.

Have you been contacted by the Kwara State Government on the issue?

The association is still hoping and believing that the state government will lend a helping hand to us. It is not a pleasant thing, however I want to believe that a government that is worth its salt will react to this type of thing.