When a few months ago the death of former Ondo Commissioner for Information, Pastor Ranti Akerele was announced, not a few who had witnessed or heard the news of earlier deaths of some of the former aides as well as close associates of Governor Olusegun Mimiko felt something was wrong somewhere. After his death came that of the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Samuel Adesina Ajayi who died a few weeks ago. In the last couple of years, the news have tilted towards the same story, young promising politicians some of who were indeed his kitchen cabinet at one point or the other had lost their lives, often in circumstances that defied some explanation.
Among those are believed to have died included the former Vice Chairman
of Labour Party in the state, Chief Iwakun from Ode –Aye. There is also former
Secretaery of the Party in the state, one Mr James. Yet another was the
Ikare-Akoko born former Local Government Service Commision Chairman in the
State, Yesiru Oladele also Known as Dudu who was indeed a very close confidant
of the Governor until he died.
Apart from this there was also another guy who also hailed from
Ode Aye the guy’s appellation was ‘Dead Body’. So also was late Commissioner
and son to former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Deji Falae who
died in the ill-fated air crash that took place last year.
In an apparent reference to the spate of deaths of close aides and
associates of the Governor, a source disclose how a man had allegedly come on
air some time ago to beg the people of Ondo state to forgive him and that he
was the driver who took some of those that died to a village in Edo state
called Shomorika and Saki as well as other places where they did some rituals.
The man, according to the unconfirmed reports claimed that he had lost two of
three kids hence he had to come out to confess as directed by Pastor TB Joshua
so that his whole family would not die.
Other sources in the state have however claimed that it was mere
coincidence that the men died one after the other even as they had all
part-taken in the struggle that brought Mimiko to power.
According to these set of sources, Ranti Akerele was known to be
hypertensive and it was coincidental that he was also one of the few people who
seriously took part in the struggle who was alienated in the recent
appointments made by the Governor. They also pointed at the late Commissioner’s
lifestyle that he could have stepped on some toes either when he was in office
or even in his private lifestyle, which many knew was a little off the cuff. He
was also said to have been deeply involved in the obaship dispute in his
hometown of Idoani, a fact that not many people knew.
Another area where fingers are being pointed at is the alleged
involvement of a female member of the state House of assembly who was said to
have been caught red-handed nailing the late Ranti Akerele’s picture to a tree
with some fetish things sometimes last year. Up till date, the female member of
the Ondo state House of Assembly is still on suspension.
Already there are insinuations in some quarters that this could
have been the remote cause of his death.
Ranti Akerele was said to have died in his sleep a few days ago.
His wife who was hospitalised in a private hospital in town was said to have
raised an alarm when she made calls to his line and he did not pick. She was
said to have called his personal staff to go and check his room and after
knocking they had to force the door open when he did not respond only for his
lifeless body to be found on the bed.
He was the first Commissioner for Information in the Mimiko
administration between 2005 and 2009.
The late Speaker of the state House of Assembly who was the latest
to die was also diagnosed of cancer. According to reports, he battled with the
ailment for several months before he eventually gave up the ghost.
Observers are wary of a situation in which most of the state’s
young political gladiators who should ordinarily take over from the Governor
when he leaves office are dying one after the other. According to some of those
we spoke to even within the circles of government there is palpable fear over
whose turn it would be next as these people are rich and powerful, yet they die
as if they do not have anything at all. A top civil servant who craved
anonymity believed that it was too much of coincidence after the alleged confession
by the driver who claimed to have taken the Governor and his friends to
somewhere where they made some juju for victory that many of the governor’s close
political associates have died in less than three years.
Dele Aladejana
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