The ghost of Nigeria’s one-time Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Chief Bola Ige, is haunting the prime suspect in his murder which happened over 11 years ago. The issue has returned to the front burner ahead of today’s scheduled declaration of Senator Iyiola Omisore for the Osun State governorship.

The Ige family, in a statement signed by Mr. Akin Ige and Mrs. Funso Adegbola, alleged that Senator Omisore, who was tried and freed by the Oyo State High Court over the murder, had concluded plans to “bring an impersonator” to speak on behalf of the family and clear him of Ige’s murder at his campaign rally in Osogbo, the Osun State capital.

The family advised the public to disregard “any impersonator who might have been bought to exonerate any person,” describing the alleged plan as “part of the calculated plot to further irritate the lingering pains of the murder of (their) patriarch and to attempt to further dance on Ige’s grave.”

The statement reads: “This is to apprise the general public, security agencies, and well meaning Nigerians that information has reached members of the family of the late Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Chief Bola Ige (who was assassinated on 23rd December, 2001), that a governorship aspirant and prime suspect of the botched murder trial of our father, who also superintended the physical assault on the person of Chief Bola Ige on 15th December, 2001, has perfected plans to bring an impersonator, who will claim to be a member of the family, to speak at his campaign rally in Osogbo this week. It was learnt that the impersonator will attempt to exculpate someone from being a suspect in the killing of our respected patriarch, the justice of whose murder case is yet to be determined.

“We state here that there is no authentic member of the Ige family, be it from the nuclear or extended family, who will come out to aggravate the pains we still feel in our hearts over the murder of our dear father, uncle and relation, by speaking at a campaign rally. It will be sacrilegious to so do. We have been struggling for years since the gruesome murder to mitigate the pain by ensuring that the masterminds and their cohorts involved in the murder are brought to justice.

“We urge members of the public to disregard any impersonator that might have been bought to make any statement exonerating any person. This plan is part of the calculated plot to further irritate the lingering pains of the murder of our patriarch and to attempt to further ‘dance on Ige’s grave’.

“We are united as a family that justice is only delayed in this case and that we are still hopeful and resolute to see that those responsible for the killing, directly or indirectly, are brought to justice notwithstanding their wealth or social standing.”

The Ige family statement came just as the Omisore camp was waging war with Governor Rauf Aregbesola and others calling on the Federal Government to re-open the Ige murder case. A statement by the Omisore Campaign Organisation reacted thus in a statement entitled ‘Stop playing politics with Ige's death – Omisore’:

“Our attention has been drawn to a news item published on page 9 of The Punch newspaper titled ‘Reopen Ige murder case, Aregbesola, groups tell FG’.

“Ordinarily, we would not have bothered to respond to this jaundice views by Aregbesola and his cohorts parading as human rights, but in order to set the records straight and stop these falsehood, we make bold to say that Senator Dr. Iyiola Omisore (PhD) who was persecuted for almost three and half years and made to suffer unjustly has reopened the case at Federal High Court, Ibadan, seeking N2billions as damages for malicious prosecution.

“We therefore wish to advise Ogbeni Aregbesola that if he has new evidence, he should apply to be joined in this case so that the truth will unfold.

“It is disheartening that Aregbesola and his ilk have chosen to dance on Ige's grave several years after his gruesome murder purely for political gain.

“When last was Aregbesola seen at Ige's anniversary for genuine concern for Ige?

“Was it not Aregbesola and Tinubu who connived with MIC to parade empty casket all over Lagos as Ige remains which they kept away from Afenifere headquarters upon request as part of conspiracy to play politics with Ige's death?

“If there are fresh facts why didn't they appeal the judgement on Ige's murder over these years, why now that election timetable was released by INEC?

“Ironically Ogbeni Aregbesola's first assignment when he was sworn in as Osun State governor was to pardon those who were sentenced to death over the murder of Hon. Odunayo Olagbaju.

“Is Aregbesola saying he does not have faith or confidence in the Judiciary that discharge and acquitted Senator Omisore? Why is the judiciary always wrong when things did go according to their wish but the best when judgment is in their favour?

“Aregbesola who claimed he has done so much for Osun state to qualify for re-election ought to have presented his so called achievements to the electorate for scrutiny instead of wiping up unnecessary sentiment whenever election approaches.

“We want to advice Aregbesola to concentrate his effort on how to reverse the mess he created through the school merger and re-classification that is causing untold hardship and crises in the state.

“His policy summersault, ill conceived, ill timed and misguided projects have become his albatross.”

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