-Aide Involved in N67m Business Deal Prior to Death
EMERGING facts reveal that Mr. Olaitan Oyerinde, the slain principal private secretary to Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole, had a N67 million deal with one of the suspects standing trial in his murder, a reverend, named David Ugolor.
According to sources, the governor’s murdered aide helped Ugolor secure a N67 million contract to renovate some schools in Edo State, including Iyoba Secondary School.
Ugolor confirmed that Oyerinde introduced Westfield Construction Company Limited to the Edo State government. He also disclosed that Oyerinde supported the firm to pre-qualify and secure the project, but later told detectives that the “support to Westfield was without any conditions.”
Ugolor, who admitted dropping off Oyerinde moments before the assailants struck, was on August 31, 2012, arraigned with nine others before a magistrate court in Benin on a 13- count charge of conspiracy to perpetrate robbery and murder.
He was specifically arraigned for contracting one Garba Usman Maisamari to rob and murder Oyerinde. The police told the court that the actions were punishable under Sections 1 (2) (a) and (b) of the Robbery and Firearms (special provisions) Act, and 319 of the Criminal Code Act.
Family sources say that they suspected their breadwinner may have been killed over a business deal gone awry, but could not say with whom as Oyerinde didn’t disclose much to his immediate family.
They however confirmed that the late aide and Ugolor had several other deals prompting the later to begin erecting a house for their slain breadwinner in Benin.
“All he told us was that Ugolor was handling a house project for him. Olaitan so trusted the man. One thing that however always worried us was that we knew very little of this Ugolor man whom he so trusted, even more than Funke, his wife,” a family source offered.
Corroborating the claim, Ugolor deposed in a statement that even though he and the murdered aide were very close, they preferred to cement their friendship at drinking joints, away from their respective families.
“We became close family friends, but we hardly visit each other at home. We both hang out after work hours.”
The activist, however, disclosed how, apart from the several business deals he struck with Oyerinde, the late aide helped connect him with top functionaries of Edo State government, including Governor Oshiomhole.
Through those contacts, said Ugolor, he was able to organise several workshops for the state government, and even facilitated the visit of the Norwegian ambassador to Governor Oshiomhole.
In return, he said, Edo State government patronized his NGO, and even at a point formally requested the Norwegian government to continue funding his NGO.
“Mr. Olaitan was our major contact in the government that assisted us to firm up the cooperation between the Edo State government and ANEEJ.”, Ugolor said.
He revealed that he and Oyerinde first met in 2006, in Abuja, at an event organised by USAID. At the time, he said, Oyerinde was with Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
Ugolor disclosed that he however lost contact with the murdered comrade until Oshiomhole became governor.
“I again ran into him (Oyerinde) when I went to meet Edo State government to formally request for their participation in the Niger Delta governance project which was funded by the Norwegian government, Swiss Embassy, and EED of Germany.
“The project was carried out in five Niger Delta states namely Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers and Cross River.
“Prior before (sic) the inception workshop for the project, I facilitated the visit of the Norwegian ambassador to Edo State to meet with Edo State government, the Oba of Benin and other key stakeholders.
“After the successful hosting of the inception workshop by the Edo State government, my contact with Mr. Olaitan Oyerinde became more frequent particularly when we are planning for training workshops for key government officials.
“When ANEEJ was to launch its Niger Delta project, we were in touch with him (Oyerinde) and he provided us the support as the private secretary to the Edo State Governor. After the workshop we remained in touch and from time to time, he was inviting ANEEJ to government programmes and he remained our close contact with the (Edo State) government.
Ugolor however added: “In all, this training was all funded by ANEEJ without receiving any money or financial support from Edo State government. Mr. Olaitan was very helpful in all our cooperation with the Edo State government. The project lasted three years.
“Owing to the success of the cooperation between ANEEJ and Edo State government, we received a letter of recommendation from Edo State Government to the Norwegian embassy to renew their funding to ANEEJ so that we can continue the project,” he wrote.
Ugolor said his relationship with Oyerinde blossomed to the point they often discussed private matters. It was during one of the sessions, claimed Ugolor, that the slain aide told him he had a gun at home for self-defence.
“Oyerinde told me he had a gun. He told me (so) when we were discussing the state of insecurity in the country, and I told him that, with the level of crime, it is very important to increase security around the house. And I told him that if government spends more resources on security the level of crime will reduce.
“I cannot recollect precisely the date we had this discussion, but it was during one of my visits to the office,” he said.
Curiously, Oyerinde’s widow and her brother reportedly told detectives they didn’t know he had a gun. More curious was that when the gunmen stormed the house, the first thing they demanded after identifying Oyerinde, was his gun.
“There were two men in the house when the gunmen struck. They first seized his brother in-law who was asleep in the bedroom. An apparently tired Oyerinde was asleep in the sofa in the sitting room. “Who is the owner of the house?” the gunmen barked as they seized the widow’s brother.
“It was after he led them into the sitting room and pointed to Oyerinde that they began to demand for his gun. Now, if they were armed robbers, did it matter who the owner of the house was? And how did they know the man kept a gun at home. Somebody must have tipped them off. And whoever tipped them off must be very close to Oyerinde,” submitted a family source.
On his part, Ugolor recalled events on the night of Oyerinde’s murder thus:
“On the fateful day, I received a phone call from Mr. Olaitan asking my whereabouts. I replied that I was in Etete with a friend called Cele who is also known. Mr. Olaitan asked me where we should go for a drink. I suggested Madam Sarah’s place which he agreed.
“My friend later drove me to that place which was about six minutes drive.
At that place we met some of our friends, including the younger brother of the Comrade Governor. After some time, Ms. Ada and her sister joined us, so we were five all together. Later Cele with (his) sister also joined us.
“…I took Harp. Mr. Olaitan took small Red Label. The NNPC staff took Heineken. Mr. Cele took Red Bull with Ada and her sister (Ada’s) took Smirnoff Ice.
“After the drinking, we left in Mr. Olaitan’s official car (Toyota) Avensis. Olaitan dropped Ms. Ada and her sister at the Boston Hotel, and later dropped me at home. And said to me that he was going home. I went into the room and slept off.
“After some time between the early hours of the following morning, I heard a loud shout from my window, saying ‘my husband has been shot!’ I quickly picked my phone and called the Control Room to formally inform them of the incident.
“I later
drove with Mrs Olaitan to their house, which is about three minutes drive from my house. When we got to the scene, me, the brother in-law, Olaitan’s wife and gate man carried Mr. Olaitan into my car and took him to Central hospital.
“When we got to Central hospital, at the emergency unit, nobody was around, and Mr. Olaitan was bleeding profusely for about 30 minutes.
“Then I decided to call the ADC to the governor who later called the Permanent Secretary to Ministry of Health. By the time the doctor and nurses arrived it was too late and the doctor later certified that he was dead.
“We later drove to the house to meet the wife and children. We took the children to my house and later moved them to Government House.
“I later met the governor Comrade Adams and briefed him about the ugly incident. I also called Ada to inform her that Mr. Olaitan has been killed. She expressed shock and I also put a call to my wife, that she should join us at the Government House to stay with Mr. Olaitan’s wife.
Later the Chief of Staff, the chairman of the Internal Revenue Board and one other met with Mr. Olaitan’s wife to break the sad news to her that her husband couldn’t survive the gunshots,” penned Ugolor. A Benin-based relation however picked holes in Ugolor’s statement.
“When Oyerinde’s widow came calling that her husband had been shot by armed robbers or whoever, his first instinct was to call the Government House Control Room? Why? He had the ADC’s number and, apparently, the governor’s.
“What purpose was the call to the control room meant to serve? To send policemen to Olaitan’s house? This is most unlikely, because nowhere in Ugolor’s statement did he talk about policemen coming to Olaitan’s house.
“Again, how could the man so brazenly drive to the house he said wasn’t far from his in the dead of the night, not minding the robbers could still be in the neighbourhood?
“Now, he claimed he rushed the dying man to a public hospital of all places and admitted spending 30 whole minutes waiting for a doctor to surface to treat a man he admitted was ‘bleeding profusely’.
Ugolor’s statement also suggested he barred Oyerinde’s widow from accompanying him to the hospital. This was most inconsiderate. The way and manner this bosom friend, who knew Oyerinde had a gun, and who knew he was retiring home tired, is suspect and needs to be investigated,” he submitted.
“That Ugolor claimed he is an activist and best of friends with Oyerinde is baseless. This does not and cannot absolve him of criminality. Spouses have been known to kill each other. Brothers have hired assassins to kill another sibling, much less a fair weather friend who relied more on Oyerinde for business deals than he did on Ugolor.
“If indeed, as claimed by Ugolor, Oyerinde helped him get a N67 million job, among other jobs, for nothing, and yet was owing him N3 million on his uncompleted house, then the jigsaw is beginning to fit,” he claimed.
Added the source, “to worsen a bad case, at no time did Ugolor formally report the matter to the police, until police detectives invited him for questioning. Moves by the state government to shield him from questioning is not only in bad taste, but equally suspicious.
“Till date, Governor Oshiomhole, who has been the cheerleader of crocodile tears for a man he refused to renew his house rent, never visited Oyerinde’s house, even after his murder. Yet he offered a N10 million reward for information on Oyerinde’s killers. This is crass hypocrisy!” he submitted.
Oyerinde’s relations, whom Pointblanknews gathered were not in best of terms with their brother, expressed concern at Ugolor’s claim that he injected an extra N3 million into a house he was building for their breadwinner.
They wondered what kind of friend would add his personal money to the tune of N3 million to a housing project belonging to another person who happened to be a governor’s aide. More surprising was the whole documents of the house, as well as those of expenses incurred were said to still be with Ugolor.
“The house at Abuja quarters which I’m supervising is on a plot of 100 by 100. The house is a four bedroom bungalow. I have received the sum of N6 million from him (Oyerinde) so far through instalment from the driver and him at Government House.
“But I have spent N9 million so far on the house. The difference, which is about N3 million is from my project pocket. Before the sudden death we were supposed to meet to review the expenses so far and agree on the next work plan to complete the house so he can pack into the house,” said Ugolor in a statement to the police.
All documents relating to Oyerinde’s house were said to still be in the custody of his friend, Ugolor. Oyerinde’s widow has reportedly out of concern for her safety fled Benin and hiding “somewhere in Lagos”.
Ugolor, who runs a non-governmental organisation (NGO)Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ), is a graduate of Agric Economics from Edo State University, Ekpoma.
It is unclear why Edo State government is protecting Ugolor. The entire verbal fireworks between Governor Oshiomhole and the police, on the one hand, and recently with the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Belllo Adoke (SAN), centre around Ugolor’s arrest and prosecution.
However, like the police, Oshiomhole appears to suspect foul play in his aide’s murder. His confusion is reflected in a recent statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Peter Okihiara.
Noted Oshiomhole: “The suspects also repeated to the governor the confessions they had made to the SSS that they were the same gang that made an attempt to attack the State Commissioner for Information, Hon Louis Odion, at his residence and their account corroborated that of Hon Odion…The only matter that remains unclear is the motive; whether it was a clear case of armed robbery or assassination on the ground that there were two men in the house and the invaders asked Oyerinde’s wife: ‘who is your husband.’ If it was a clear case of armed robbery, it would not have mattered who the husband was.”