The late Adegboyega Adebayo
34-year-old Lance Corporal Adegboyega Adebayo, who is one of the
two soldiers killed by hoodlums two days before the Rivers State rerun
election, was finally laid to eternal rest in the Iyesi area of Ogun
State as emotions ran high on Friday.
The gallant soldier was shot dead on the sea in the Abonema,
Akuku-Toru LGA of the state on March 17, and his brothers and friends
during the bural, decried lack of concern from both the Rivers State and
the federal governments, saying apart from the military, no government
official had sent a condolence message or visited the family even though
he died in the line of duty.
The soldier who was succeeded by parents, a wife, and two children -
Marvelous, 6, and 2-month-old Mercy, was described as the breadwinner
of his extended family, and that he was on an assignment when his wife
put to bed and had yet to see the baby before his death.
His 66-year-old mother, Clara Adebayo, called for an investigation
into the circumstances surrounding her son’s death, saying that the
family had been dealt a big blow.
"He is the breadwinner of the family. His siblings are well
educated, but without jobs; he was the one assisting them. The killers
have ruined my family. The Rivers State Government should do whatever
it can to help the family. He did not know his baby," she said.
The deceased’s father, Victor, a retired civil servant, said, "He
died serving the country. I learnt he was shot dead at close range. So
far, no government official, either from the Rivers State Government or
the Federal Government, has visited us. I appeal to the state governor
(Nyesom) Wike, to fulfil the pledge of compensation he made. He should
not forget the family," he said.
The deceased’s 32-year-old wife, Tawakalitu, said that she spoke
with her husband two hours before his death, adding that the incident
was still a mystery to her.
"He was a loving and caring man. It was on March 17 that he
called me that he was going for election duty and I told him to inform
me when he got to where they posted him. About two hours later, I called
his line, but it was no longer going through. I did not get any
information until on Monday when my dad told me he was late.
"The death was unusual. They were many on patrol. I don’t know
where to start from. I gave birth to a child a few days before he died
and he did not set his eyes on the baby. How will I cope?What kind of
life is this? The Rivers State Government should come to our aid," she said.
The immediate younger brother of the late soldier, Charles Adebayo,
blamed the crisis between the All Progressives Congress and the Peoples
Democratic Party in the state for the death of his brother.
"There are two masters holders in the family, but we are
jobless. He was the breadwinner of the entire family. His death has
dealt an irreparable blow to the family. It is something that could have
been avoided. More pathetic is his new-born baby he was unable to see.
He was supposed to attend the naming, but he could not because of the
nature of his job.
"We learnt that he was heading for where he was posted for the
election and there was a distress call from somewhere. God knows who
made the call, but they made a U-turn.
"On the way, an ambush was laid for them. People said Wike
promised to do something reasonable to help the family, but as of now,
we have not heard anything from him. In my opinion, it was the political
crisis in that state that caused his death," he said.
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