By Charles Kumolu
 |
| Late Dele Giwa |
Regrettably brief but inspirationally
eventful! This short acclamation best raises the curtain once again on
the life of Dele Giwa, who has justifiably refused to die after being
gruesomely denied the right to live on October 19, 1986.
That Giwa, an ace journalist, has
remained a phenomenon in the Nigerian narrative 30 years after dying via a
letter bomb, is an affirmation of the import of his life, times as well as the
implication of his kind of exit. 4
It was a life sojourn, birthed in
humility, expended on national good and cut short by man’s inhumanity to
man-apologies to Robert Burns.
Having attended local Authority Modern
School in Lagere, Ile-lfe; Oduduwa College, Ile-Ife; Brooklyn College ,USA; and
Fordham University ,USA, he was princely moulded for the profession that earned
him stardom, significance, and death.
In his nearly four decades on earth,
the late founding Editor-in-Chief of Newswatch Magazine earned himself
professional prominence and national significance through the pursuit of
professional goals and commitment to societal good.
Through the introduction of bold and
investigative approach to journalism in Nigeria, Giwa , who was born in 1947 in
the palace of the Ooni of Ife, altered social anomalies in manners that held
the citizen and the state responsive.
Decrees, edicts, boots on the ground
Frontally, his pen confronted decrees,
edicts, and boots on the ground with the aim of enthroning public good
especially in an era that was not guided by the constitution.
These, the late journalist, who hailed
from Edo State, exhibited as Features Editor of Daily Times, Weekend Concord
and Editor-in-Chief of Newswatch
Magazine-the position he held at the time the angels of death delivered the
deadly parcel through his then 19-year-old son, Billy, who received it on his
behalf.
Indeed, the major resultant effect of
that parcel which was Giwa’s death may have dealt a devastating blow to
journalism in Nigeria, it interestingly failed to suppress the ability to
espouse and seek the truth.
However, the death which took place at
the First Foundation Hospital, Ikeja, Lagos, where he was rushed to after the
explosion at his No 25, Talabi Crescent, Adeniyi Jones Avenue, Ikeja
residence, remains saddening but significant in many ways.
On the one hand, many are still
appalled at the failure of requisite institutions at clearing the fog
surrounding the death in respective of acclaimed traces, while others see such
failure as the absence of capacity by the Nigerian state to protect its
citizens.
On the other hand, the incident
emboldened the use of free speech as a weapon against societal ills and tyranny
to point that the media stood up to the late Gen San Abacha’s dictatorship.
That the nation from that moment, has
been boldly asking: Who Killed Dele Giwa? affirms that his death rather than
suppressing the right to free speech fuelled the feelings of fearlessness the
more.
And the event which is still believed
to be an affront to press freedom has further amplified the voices for press
freedom which many would agree is not sufficiently practicable as enshrined in
chapter II section 39 subsection (1) of the 1999 constitution.
The constitution highlighted that part
thus: “Every person shall be entitled to freedom of expression, including
freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart ideas and information
without interference.”
Though some have argued that freedom of
expression even with the Freedom of Information Act, FOIA, does not mean
absolute freedom, the fact that journalists perform constitutionally backed
duties, qualifies them for state protection.
Giwa’s gruesome murder and its
unresolved status, testify to the need for that considering that some
journalists had also died under questionable circumstances since that incident
of October 19, 1986.
Certainly, the attendant implications
of his death informed the thrust of a colloquium holding today in Lagos in
commemoration of the 30 years of his demise.
The event which is entitled: Safety of
Journalists and Culture of Impunity in Africa, seeks to reflect on the life of
Giwa, his contributions to journalism and the implication of his death to the
practice of journalism in Africa.
With participants drawn from the media,
armed forces, the executive arm of government, judiciary and civil society, the
choice of attendees can’t be termed inappropriate considering the role the
institutions they represent, played in the aftermath of the death of Giwa, who
in his time, epitomised excellence and dynamism in Nigerian journalism.
Expectedly, today’s exercise may, on
the one hand, produce a consensus for an objective investigation of the matter
beyond what has been a thirty-year official indifference, just as many would
re-echo this three-decade-old question: Who killed Dele Giwa?
Govt was interested in Dele Giwa’s
case—Tsav Reflecting on Giwa’s demise yesterday in an exclusive chat with
Vanguard, a retired Police Commissioner, who conducted the initial
investigation into the matter, Alhaji Abubakar Tsav, urged the media to ensure
that such cases are satisfactorily concluded.
He said: ”There was gross negligence in
the cause of investigating Dele Giwa’s death.
The negligence was on the part of the
instigative authority and the government. I handled the case immediately it
happened and sought the permission to search the places I was supposed to but
the files left my hand and never came back. Before then I had already
interviewed Soyinka, who was Dele Giwa at the time the incident happened, Dele
Giwa’s wife and Gani Fawehinmi.
The claim that Soyinka knew what
happened is not true. When the matter got to Omaben, he started to say that Soyinka
was responsible and deviated from my view. That was the end of that case.
Any case that the government is
interested in will never see the light of the day. That was what happened. The
government was interested in the case of Dele Giwa. We saw that happen in the
case of Rewane, Bola Ige, and others. That case like Dele Giwa’s case showed
that any case that the government has an interest in dies a natural death.
As the media remembers Dele Giwa, they
should henceforth insist that any murder case is brought to a logical
conclusion even if it is the murder of a beggar, it must be investigated with a
view to bringing those responsible to book. I handled the case with enthusiasm
so that we could know those responsible because that was the first bomb blast in
Nigeria but the government was interested in it.
It was after then that we started
having cases of bomb last like during the NADECO days when the group was
wrongly accused of being behind the blasts.”
·
Culled from Vanguard
