WHO KILLED THIS MAN?

His name was Bolaji Ige. He was a lawyer who attained the preeminent legal pinnacle of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) which is equivalent to the Queens Counsel (QC) in Britain. He was also also a politician and was a governor of a state in Nigeria called Oyo State. The disgraced former despotic ruler by fiat of Nigeria, Babalawo Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo, invited him to serve in his "regime" as Energy Minister and later Justice Minister of Nigeria. It was while he was serving his fatherland in this later capacity that he was killed by invading "marauders" and in his country home while eating dinner with his wife and children.

It has been several years now since the sad incident but no one has been arrested, indicted and/or convicted for the gruesome homicide. This lackadaisical, wilful indifference and/or foot-dragging with which the investigation into his death is going by the government, feeds the school of thought theorists which posits that his death was sanctioned by the highest authority in the land. Thus our quest, as we pontificate "who killed this man"? As a serving Minister of Justice of Nigeria, he was the head of all the law enforcement agencies in Nigeria and by his accomplishments both in the legal field and politics, he was not a plebeian but a man of paramount stature whose murder could not be possible except it was sanctioned or otherwise approved at the highest authority then in Nigeria. The one and only then subsisting authority superior to this murdered man and who peradventure is the only person upon whose command and authorisation the murder of Bola Ige could have only been possible is no other person but the ex-president of Nigeria, Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo. This man and and only him could have "authorised" or tacitly approved through wilful indifference the killing of his Justice Minister, Chief Bolaji Ige, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. If Aremu Obasanjo did not sign off on this cold murder, this blogger strongly believes that it would not have been possible or practicable considering the very high position, which the late Bola Ige occupied in the government. Also worrisome was the manner and circumstance of the killing which was so heinous and calculated for it to be just another accidental or chance killing in a crime prone country, Nigeria. This blogger takes this strong position because as a serving Justice Minister with his towering stature in the Nigerian society, and as a politician being a former governor of a state coupled with his accomplishments in law as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, he had a security detail comparable to that of the President. It therefore does not make sense that the "beasts" that took Bola Ige's life could have easily penetrated his security condone and killed a sitting Justice Minister and to date no serious investigation has been carried out or anyone with probable cause to kill him yet arrested or charged or convicted. Only in Nigeria could this horrendous extermination of a sitting Justice Minister be possible.

For the reader of this blog to be able to make up his or her mind on the possible complicity or otherwise of the devil may care, Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo in the killing of Bola Ige; he or she need to understand the circumstances surrounding this killing. Bola Ige as a serving Justice Minister was assigned about fourteen security details by the President himself in whom the prerogative lies to withdraw or pull them out as he may please. In other words the security details were answerable to the President and to him they owe utmost allegiance to. To date none of them has been arrested or charged concerning this death and no plausible explanation has been put forward to try to explain away their involvement or lack thereof. According to the narrative, Bola Ige was en route Abuja capital city, after an official engagement in Lagos, when he was persuaded to make a detour to his Ibadan country home that evening to call it a day. At his house, he was having dinner with his wife and children when some "hoodlums" came in through the door and pumped several bullets into his body with his wife and children watching their father and husband brutally murdered and before their own very eyes. As if this is not enough horror already, the "bandits" emptied several magazines inside his body and with the help of a stethoscope made sure he no longer breathed. Then here is the stunner, Bolaji Ige as a Justice Minister of no mean stature was assigned a fourteen man round the clock security detail - called MOPOL in Nigeria which to certain extent is comparable to America's SWAT team that sometimes doubles as a protection force for dignitaries. The government buffoonery of an explanation was that all these security men went out for their own dinner-break when these killers breached the compound perimeters and killed Bola Ige. But such story can only be told to the marines, period! It is no brainier. It does not make sense. It is so lame that you have to suspend disbelieve to believe it. It flies in the face of whatever is plausible and reasonably obtainable; that one is wont to ask, what was the use for a fourteen man security detail if not to provide a round the clock security condone around the subject to be protected? Why would all of the security detail then go to their dinner-break at the same time and the same very window the supposed "marauders" stormed into the residence and took his life. How did the "marauders" know the security details' minute operational details so much as to strike at the very time and window of opportunity in which they struck - when they all went to a "dinner break"? How far were their removal from the premises not to hear any altercation, the sound of the first gunfire, followed then by several other bullets being fired thereafter and then the final "Houdini escape" from the compound of the "bandits"; with none of them having been caught ever since. Did they disappear from the face of the earth since none was caught on the premises of Bola Ige's compound or in his city of Ibadan or his State of Oyo or his country of Nigeria or from any other place on planet earth, ever since.

Tell this blogger the government does not have any plausible explanation because they are looking at themselves while searching for the culprits. They are also looking in the mirror of their investigation and only seeing themselves because under the circumstances as narrated, there could not have possibly been any external intruder that night. It is is not right! It stinks! It cries to the high heavens! The most annoying aspect of the incident is that the always vociferous Yorubas whose son Bola Ige was, have been uncannily very taciturn regarding the pursuit of his killers or in demanding a thorough investigation thereto. This lack of desire to unmask the real killers of Bola Ige by the Yorubas is fuelling the school of thought theorists which posit that the then government headed by another of their kinsman, Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo knew more than they are willing to admit of what happened to Bola Ige. The death of the Cisero of Oke-Ona, as he was fondly referred to, must be avenged. All those people or person who in anyway was an accomplice to his murder shall not know peace until they complete the process of absolution - they must confess, they must repent and they must face their penance if ever they want to find true peace in forgiveness. What was Bola Ige's offense that he must be killed and killed in front of his wife and children? What did Bola Ige do that he must be eliminated by fellow mortals? It is not like the approving authority for his killing will live forever and not someday die headed to the hottest place in Hades. A popular aphorism says that there are two types of evil people - those who do evil and those who condone evil. The Yorubas, for not forcefully agitating for the investigation and prosecution and possible conviction of the killers of Bola Ige are as such qualified. Something has to be done otherwise Bola Ige's death will go into the cold doldrums wherein Dele Giwa's death by parcel bomb has been since the eighties.

A president or head of state whose primary duty is to protect the citizens of the country, have turned into a blood-sucking vampire feeding on the crimson of her people and of their brightest minds. Dele Giwa was a seasoned investigative journalist and publisher; and Bola Ige was a well learned lawyer Senior Advocate of Nigeria and a successful politician. How could this happen and the silent majority are cowering in a fear-induced stupor simply because they do not want to also end up in the belly of the beast; but who lives forever, anyway? It is not right! Do not let the man in you die because of your silence! If everyone has been standing up to speak up against all the maladies prevalent in the Nigerian society, maybe some common sense would have been put into the heads of the so-called leaders and peradventure they would have stopped their evil deeds or at least try, in order for Nigeria to really move forward. It is a supreme duty call on all to speak up to empower the people to start looking for a way out of the woods wherein several years of maladministration has driven Nigeria into. My heart bleeds for Nigeria and the cowardly indifference of her populace leaves much to be desired; and this is the single most reason why their rulers ride them like donkeys or beast of burden who must perpetually obey without any complain. It is because of this disposition that an inept Babalawo Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo could rule Nigeria twice and on both occasions failed Nigerians but has not been prosecuted for his atrocious misdeeds. It is about time, Nigerians take a stand against injustice, corruption, maladministration, state sanctioned murders and all the ills of society affecting her development and well being.

Whose turn next is it anyways? Nobody knows. If the sitting President, Police Chief and the Justice Minister cannot investigate what happened to Bola Ige, who is sure that the same cannibals will not strike again next time; which reminds me of the poem 'for whom the bell tolls'. The death of Bola Ige SHOULD be investigated and the culprit brought to justice and this position should be the chorus of every Nigeria particularly the Yorubas of Nigeria. Their continued silence regarding this does not portray Nigerians well especially the Yorubas who by their tacit silence are being perceived now as a people that eats one of their own. Can you imagine the hullabaloo and brouhaha they would have raised were Bola Ige to be serving under a Hausa or Igbo president when he was killed? Bola Ige was one of your own and belong to the Awoist school of politics and hence must not die unsung like a destitute. He deserves better than that. At least he earned the right for his death to be investigated and conclusively too. Bola Ige served Oyo State well as their governor in the second republic and he was also a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. Icheoku hereby states and for the records, that it is the right thing to do - to officially and formally invite Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo as well as then Inspector General of Police, Ehindero to tell Nigerians and the world all that they knew about the authorisation, plot and eventual murder of the former Justice Minister of Nigeria, Chief Bola Ige, SAN and the time is NOW!