19 hours ago
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Farmer and father of nine, Paul Odeh, speaks to AJIBADE OMAPE about the circumstance that led to the killing of Moses, his 19-year-old son by his neighbour’s son
How are you related to Moses Odeh?
I am his father, and his mother is my second wife. I am an indigene of Benue State. I am married to two women and have nine children from both women.
Can you tell us about your son, Moses, and what type of person he was?
My son was a quiet young man; he recently gained his freedom from his boss. He was a mechanic by profession and was trained for about eight years. He learnt to repair Bajaj motorcycles and other brands. He had his certificate. He was a gentle young man who was just 19 years of age.
He was known for his calm nature and was quite helpful to people around the neighbourhood. My son, Moses, was a lovely child; I can’t explain how I feel that such a thing that took his precious life happened to him. If you ask all the people in the neighbourhood, they will tell you about Moses and his cool nature.
How did you receive the news of his tragic death, and what was your immediate reaction?
I had just returned from work and was relaxing after a stressful day. I was lying down when I heard someone screaming my name, asking that I come outside. I was initially hesitant to respond because I was tired, but after a few minutes, I stood up to ask what was happening, and that was when I was told that my son had been stabbed.
By the time I got outside, commercial motorcycle riders had taken him to the hospital because he was popular for fixing their motorcycles. I was told that while the commercial motorcycle riders were putting him on the bike, Olamide, my neighbour’s son picked up a stick, saying he was going to kill my son, but the bike men drove off and took him (my son) to the hospital.
I was furious when I saw the blood, and I said I was going to report it to the police, but the doctor asked me to come and carry him along to the station. I was advised to leave him because the bleeding was too much. Olamide’s parents were there.
His mother used a cloth to wrap my son’s wound to try and stop the bleeding. When I arrived at the hospital, I paid for a hospital card; I paid for his test and other things, but he gave up the ghost because he had lost so much blood. He died in the hospital the next day.
How has this incident affected your family emotionally, mentally and financially?
Ever since the incident occurred, I have not been myself. I fainted after some days, and his siblings poured water on me to revive me. I just returned from the hospital. I could not believe it, because we usually slept together in the same place at home, and the incident took a toll on me.
I cannot understand why Olamide stabbed my son. His (Moses) siblings were devastated. His mother is currently in Benue State, and she was at the hospital when she heard about the incident.
Moses was a good person to everyone, and most people in the neighbourhood who knew him missed him because of his kind gestures. Nobody is happy that my son was killed.
My son always took his job so seriously that if you called on him at late hours to help fix your generator or motorcycle, he would seek permission from me and he would go and come back without any harm or trouble.
He would usually help the elderly to fetch water; he was a generous and helpful kid. When his contemporaries at his place of work heard about his death, they were all devastated.
I have spent a lot since this incident. I had to deposit N80,000 at the hospital the night my son was taken there, and I also made other payments for some things at the hospital. Travelling down to Benue State now is very expensive.
We have been paying N1,500 every day since his body was deposited, and it is not sustainable for me. When the police wanted to take Olamide Philips into their custody, I paid almost N100,000 if not more, I don’t have this money.
Were you aware of any previous conflict between Moses and Olamide Phillips, or did the attack on your son come without any indication that such action would happen?
There was no conflict between them initially. We live in the same compound with Olamide’s family. Olamide’s mother called me from where I was lying down and was talking to me, reporting her children who allegedly took her money from her purse.
I then called Olamide and spoke to him about what the mother told me had happened. I advised him on what to do when next he needed money.
His sibling, who was ill at that time, was getting treated, and I told him that his mum was trying her best to provide for them in her little way and also take care of her ill child. I told him that his mother would need all the money she could get to get his sibling well again.
Do you have any information about what led to the fight that resulted in Moses death?
My son walked into the compound and saw me talking to our neighbour’s son, Olamide, who was said to have taken his mother’s money from her purse. My son encouraged him to always ask his mum for anything he needed and not to go behind her back to take money from her purse.
Olamide, on the other hand, was not remorseful for taking the money from his mother’s purse and was angered by the little advice my son gave him. He (Olamide) then started to call out my son, raining abuse and curses on him for his interference, saying he was not going to return the money he took.
All along, I was seated talking to Olamide not to do such again. My son then went inside the house to watch television with his siblings. Later that night, at about 8 pm, my son and some of his siblings went outside to buy something to eat because they were hungry, and that was when Olamide slapped him before stabbing him with a knife.
How old is Olamide Phillips?
I know he is about the same age with my son, although at the police station when writing his statement, he claimed to be 18-years-old.
Were there witnesses where the incident happened, and what did they say about how the fight escalated?
Most of the people who lived in our compound and around our house were outside when the incident occurred, and I was told that it was one of them who called the police after the altercation took place.
Have the police taken any decisive action against Olamide, and what update have you received regarding the investigation?
Yes. I went to report to the police the following day when my son died. The police followed me and looked for Olamide, but he was not found, and the father was also not found. Olamide ran away to their family house and that was where he was apprehended by the police.
I spent a lot just to make sure the police did their job. He was taken to the police station at Elewe-eran in Abeokuta. His parents were invited to the station for questioning, but I was told they did not respond to the police.
When the police heard of the incident, they came to our neighbourhood. The police went on to search the house of Olamide, and fortunately for them, they found the knife he used to stab my son. Upon further investigation, they found several other knives and weapons hidden in the walls of the house where he lived, and they allegedly found a gun in that place.
How have you been coping since the incident?
I have not been able to go to the farm; my neighbours and people have been assisting me with food and some money to survive. My son’s death took a huge toll on me, and working has been put on hold. I also fell ill shortly after because he was so dear to me. No father would want such to happen to any of his children.
My other children have also been helpful; sleeping has also been difficult because he usually sleeps beside me and sometimes, I would escort him to do some jobs. His boss at his place of work had also been supportive and also missed Moses because he was an instrumental apprentice under him. My son was one of his most diligent workers.
Do you believe justice has been served in the matter, or are you facing challenges in ensuring the killer gets punished for his crime?
I can’t say for sure if justice has been served in this case because ever since my son’s killer was apprehended, I have not been called to the station, although I was told that the boy confessed to killing my son with a knife.
He was asked who ordered him to do so, but he said he did it on his own accord but did not know it would lead to his death. The police have asked us to get a lawyer, but what do I need a lawyer for when my son has died and the parents of the boy in question have refused to show up at the police station?
How would you like the government to intervene in this case?
I need the government to intervene with the right punishment, and I believe the penalty for killing someone is death. The government has to kill that boy first, or do they want to release him? Are they expecting me to employ the services of a lawyer which will cost me almost N300,000 or more?
Why do I need a lawyer for a case where the victim is dead and cannot tell the court what happened? The government should do what they are supposed to do in this kind of matter.
How did the people on Obalende Street, Isara, react to this tragic event?
Many people in the neighbourhood complained about the boy (Olamide) and how he caused trouble all around. Most people don’t want to see him again.
What do you think can be done to prevent violent incidents like this among young people in Nigeria?
I don’t know what to say; different things happen in different communities. I just want the government to intervene and do the right thing.
If you could send a message to Olamide Phillips or his family, what would you tell them?
For Olamide, he should also be killed for killing my son. The family has refused to reach out to me, and there is nothing I can say to them. I don’t have any power of my own. My son’s body has not been released to me because we have not gone to court yet.
In my village, when a young man dies like that, we don’t take them to the mortuary, and we make sure they are buried within two or three days. But it has been over a week since the incident happened. My son has not been buried, and it’s painful. His mother has not even seen her dead son.
