Accidents do happen, and
people do die too, but the death of Professor Festus Iyayi was exceptional.
It will be recalled that
in December 28, 2012, Governor Idris wada convoy was involved in a deadly
accident that claimed the life of his aide de camp while he (Mr. Idris) was hospitalized
at the National Hospital, Abuja where he was treated for serious injuries.
It is on
record that Governor Idris have most reckless convoys in Nigeria where drivers
attached to governors and other top officials are known for driving dangerously.
The same reckless convoy and their dangerous driving caused the untimely death of
Mr. Festus Iyayi, professor of business at the University of Benin (UNIBEN). a
well-known Nigerian novelist and activist academic, on November 12,2013, when a
car in the convoy of the Kogi State Governor, Idris Wada, rammed into his
vehicle near Lokoja in Kogi State.
According to the Corps Marshal and chief Executive
of FRSC, Mr. Osita Chidoka, who said this while addressing reporters that: “Of
the 700 convoy drivers we trained in the last two years, none of them has been
involved in any road crashes. The only crash we have seen so far from convoy
are from people that have not attended our training.
“There are some vital things they
were taught on how to move on convoy. So, now that the governor had directed
his people to be trained, we have also advised him to bring some FRSC officials
into his convoy because many of the state governors who have had no crashes
have FRSC officials in their convoy.
He added that, “Unfortunately, the
Kogi State convoy drivers have not been involved in this training. I’ve just
been told by the Sector Commander that the governor had asked him to take all
the convoy drivers from Kogi State for this training, because, Kogi convoy
drivers were not involved in this training.
Dr. Festus Iyayi studied
economics and business management in the old Soviet Union as well as in the UK,
and became a career-long lecturer. A fearless, outspoken member of ASUU, he was
at one time a leader of the ASUU chapter at UNIBEN before becoming the group’s
national leader, he was also an elected as the President of the Committee for
the Defence of Human rights (CDHR).
Commenting on the death, Nigeria
Medical Association, (NMA) President, Osahon Enabulele, said: “While we mourn
the extremely sad and tragic death of this dogged and courageous fighter for
socio-economic and political justice in Nigeria, and an unrepentant crusader
for restoration of standards and excellence in university education, we are
pained that his death followed another despicable act of recklessness and
impunity by executive convoys.
“The NMA, calls on the Federal
Government to institute an urgent official inquiry into the circumstances that
led to Prof. Iyayi’s death while machinery is urgently put in motion by the
Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, to put an end to the recklessness
of executive convoys whose intolerable impunity has sent many innocent and
productive Nigerians to their early graves.
‘’Surely, we shall miss the inspirational
literary works and great personality of Prof. Festus Iyayi, especially at this
crucial period of our country’s history when his usually frank contributions to
the resolution of the several questions bordering on the existence of the
Nigerian state, are most needed.
‘’While we await the outcome of the official
inquiry into the auto crash, we deeply condole with the entire Iyayi family,
the President and members of ASUU and the Vice-Chancellor, University of
Benin.’’
While commiserating with the
immediate family of Prof. Iyayi and leadership of ASUU, NUPENG, General Secretary, Isaac Aberare insisted that
Iyayi’s death “is just one death too many caused by convoys of this nature and
the National Assembly must pass a law to stop such reckless driving and
penalise offenders.
“NUPENG also calls on the federal
and state governments to rehabilitate our roads to make them motorable, instead
of the bad incidences of pot holes dotting our roads causing
accidents. The nation cannot continue to lose innocent lives due to
negligence and recklessness on the part of government and uncaring government
drivers.
Peoples Democratic Movement, PDM
National Chairman, Mallam Yusuf Ibrahim, lamented that Iyayi’s death came at a
time “when his academic services are needed the most.” And added that the
“deplores the incessant loss of valuable Nigerian lives due to avoidable road
accidents caused by poor road construction and, often, by reckless and
dangerous driving by highly placed Nigerians.
“Nigeria has endured too much loss of its
priceless human assets through untimely deaths resulting from unnecessary road
accidents.”
Supervising Minister of Education,
Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, in a statement, said: “The late former ASUU President was
an erudite scholar whose academic and professional contributions to national
development will be missed. I pray God to grant the ASUU, the family of
Professor Iyayi and the entire nation, the strength to bear this loss. We are
very sad about the death of Professor Festus Iyayi who had been a strong voice
in the advancement of quality university education in our country. His death is
a huge loss to Nigeria.”
Governor Adams Oshiomhole, of Edo
State, during a condolence visit described late Professor Iyayi as “a man who gave
his all in the struggle and led by example.” He went further to say that: “I
am here on behalf of the good people of Edo State to condole with you and members
of your family on the death of Professor Festus Iyayi. The Iyayi family
cannot be defined in terms of the wife, the immediate children, as well as
family members.
“Iyayi was a member of a much larger family that
cuts across the length and breadth of Nigeria. For me, and I believe for all
those who knew him, it was a rude shock. In fact, I was extremely shocked. It
was extremely shocking when somebody showed me a text message and suggested in
that message that Iyayi might not have survived that accident. I told the man
not to spread false rumour.
“A week before then, I saw
him on television along with his colleagues providing intellectual backing
as to why the Federal Government should deliver on its commitment to ASUU as
per the agreement signed in 2009. I played a part in the signing of that
agreement after both parties shifted ground.
“When I learnt that our
comrade died in such gruesome manner, only a stone hearted person would not be
moved. I do not know how to convey, not just my feeling, but the feelings of
those who have known him.
“I had known him when I was in the Nigeria
Labour Congress, NLC, and ASUU at that time was not part of the NLC. Iyayi
along with his colleagues provided intellectual backing to support and
encourage the NLC to articulate its position on a variety of socio-economic and
political issues. So he was always there”, he said.
Oshiomhole noted that “in line
with the ASUU tradition of selfless service and sacrifice in the true sense of
that word, he would always travel by road covering long distances where even
junior officers and lower people would rather take flights. ASUU leaders would
always go by road to any part of the country, leading by example.
“When people talk of
selfless service, commitment to nation, leadership by example giving
your all to what you believe in, constituting yourself to a one man liberation
army driven by national passion to reposition our great country to lead the
continent to the way God had intended, Iyayi represented the best of that
tradition”, he noted.
Oshiomhole insisted “even those who disagreed
with his logic could not fault his position. Even those who faulted his logic
could not fault his patriotism that informed those positions. Those are the
kind of leadership every community needs if Nigeria would be different from
what it has been.
“When I came here, I was troubled
by the position of Ambrose Alli University and I wanted people who have
dedicated their lives to the cause of education, Professor Iyayi and Dr Peter
Ozo-Eson are people I knew all their lives they have worked persuading
government to accord the appropriate recognition and sufficient allocation to
the university system in order to build the much needed competent human
capital.
“I approached them to be members
of the governing council which they readily accepted and offered their time
generously along with others to provide leadership for the AAU. When I say that
we feel the pains, it is not a matter of rhetoric”, he said.
Meanwhile, The Onojie of Ugbegunland,
HRM, Samuel Obade I, and his people, are
demanding a compensation of N50 billion to be paid to the immediate family of
the late professor by the Kogi State governor, Captain Idris Wada.
