TRibute to the bLOOdS that was Sacrifice for Fayose Election
Ten days just after the gubernatorial election of Saturday
June 21, 2014 took place in Ekiti State and a winner
emerged, it is pertinent that we spare a thought for the
tragic heroes and heroines of the exercise. Most importantly,
those consumed by pre-election violence and premeditated
attacks on innocent souls. Though an exercise which has
put Ekiti on a national pedestal as society which needed a
change and got it. And an election which has made the 17
years old state attain the status of a threshold of 'people's
voice' in the South/West political arithmetic in the build-up
to 2015 general elections.
Despite much ado over this resounding and collective feat, it
appears that little or nothing is being said about those who
paid the supreme price. The price of life. I think also that
Nigerians are beginning to be oblivious of those who are
alive, yet sacrificed their time, energy and resources to effect
this change we now love. The sacrifices that eventually
prevented another four years of misrule and another round
of policy somersault by the outgoing Governor Kayode
Fayemi of APC.
In irony, I have seen various newspaper columnists and
commentators at work, postulating one political theory or
another. Yet none is willing to mention this category of
people. On the streets of every town in Ekiti today, it is very
easy seeing hundreds of youths now wearing PDP/Fayose's
vests as if they are the true heroes of June 21. That further
fuels the veracity of the saying that success has many
relations, but failure is an orphan.
It will be too short a memory of ours to have forgotten the
blood of victims, tears of their relations in these series of
political assassinations. This is aside the bloodletting that
became a recurring decimal in these three and half years,
especially days coming before election. To those who
participated actively, those days were regarded as days of
struggle and undercurrent mass movement against tyranny
of the incumbent. A battle which, if lost would have sent the
crusaders packing from Ekiti for another four years. Thereby
making them person non grata in their land of birth, from a
place they have grown to love so much over the years.
The euphoria of celebration in the aftermath of June 21 will
remain imbalanced if the likes of Foluso Ogundare were not
mentioned. If the spirit of Chief Adeleye Awolumate was not
appeased with kind words not that the siege is over. If Ayo
Murphy Jeje's remains were just allowed to be laid to rest
without a thought for him today. What of late Mrs Juliana
Adewumi? a 76 years old woman brutally murdered. Over
what she believed in. Kehinde Fajuyi and Michael Ipinlaye
were among those who will not live to heigh a sign of relief
after Fayemi's ouster. And most recently, there was the
case of Akinola Taiwo with whose blood the platter of this
Ekiti electoral victory was washed.
Just like others mentioned above, Ogundare was murdered
in cold blood by anti-democratic forces instituted by APC
which bestrode our landscape like an evil colossus. They
fought everyone so hard to make today's celebrated change
almost impossible. On that fateful day at Emure Ekiti,
(November 3rd, 2013) tragedy struck in the sleepy town
when APC-propelled bullets ribbed through the torso of the
middle age man. He went down the way of others over
suspicion that he was organizing a political meeting to
dislodge Fayemi, this happened about a year earlier than his
actual dislodgement occurred. As a mark of honour to his
hurriedly departed soul at 37, the Labour Party chapter in
Ekiti State and its governorsdhip candidate Hon. Michael
Opeyemi Bamidele organized a befitting burial for Ogundare
on the 5th of June this year. It was a tale of sorrow by his
loved ones, wives and children. But the only respite lies in
the fact that key officials of the outgoing administration of
APC are currently in court to answer a murder charge.
Taiwo Akinola is another hero. This was a man in his early
twenties who got eliminated in controversial manner during
an ensuing skirmish between political goons of those who
wanted to subvert the wish of the people to remain in office
beyond October 16th, 2014. Though not belonging to any
political group, Akinola met his death under an unsafe
administration of Fayemi. The usurpers didn't see anything
wrong in laying claim to his corpse. They played different
ridiculous politics with his bloodied body, including covering
him up with an APC-branded vest. Followed by a sudden
visit to the monarch of his hometown in Ido-Ajinare to
register a feigned bitterness.
The heroism as demonstrated by Adewumi who laid down
her life on March 31, 2013 for tomorrow she wouldn't know
is worthy of immense commendation. At 76, most of her
contemporaries are no longer concerned about politics of
their time. But she fought her battle to the graveside and
this is the more reason she must be celebrated. Adewumi
did not die because she wanted to seek elective office at her
advanced age. But she died so that a new dawn will be
ushered into Ekiti. She died so that others can live a better
living. A living where there will be a clear difference between
qualitative and affordable education, maybe for her grand
and great-grandchildren. A state where water will not be an
essential commodity again as witnessed under Fayemi. And
a state where backlog of pension arrears and miscellaneous
allowances will become an issue of the past among civil
servants.
Because things were done in the manner of business as
usual under Fayemi and there was no end in sight soon if
they failed to act; the duo of Kehinde' Fajuyi and Michael
Ipinlaye became part of history. They were killed the same
day March 23, 2011 at Kota area of Omuo Ekiti by the same
'authority people'.
November 18 2010 witnessed the killing of Chief Awolumate
at Otun Ekiti, the PDP chieftain was not as lucky as those
he was holding a party meeting with his people. Again, APC
thugs in their numbers overran them, eliminated him and
walked away. Same happened to Jeje on March 31, 2013
when he was shot dead by thugs allegedly led by one Jide
Awe, the interim state chairman of APC in Ekiti state. These
are indeed the true heroes and heroines who reluctantly
surrendered to claws of death brought by their way by their
oppressors so that others can have live in abundance under
a government that will genuinely be people-oriented in Ekiti
in the future not too far.
I therefore use this opportunity to appeal to the incoming
government to ensure a way of assuaging pains of the
families they left behind. Secondly, the incoming government
must revisit all murder and attempted murder cases within
this period under review, with a view to punishing all
culprits already shielded politically. I think i will also
discourage future occurrences and lay a foundation of level-
playing ground for everyone involved.
(pls comment here to wish them REST IN PEACE)
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