Dele Giwa-murdered via parcel bomb October 19,1986
Forty years after his death via parcel bomb, at his Ikeja home, a Medical doctor Dokun Adedeji has recalled the final moments of Dele Giwa, the founding editor-in-chief of Newswatch magazin.
Mr Adedeji said Mr Giwa, who was taken to First Foundation Medical Centre in Opebi, Ikeja, after the October 19, 1986, attack, asked him if he would survive his injuries.
The doctor spoke on Monday at the launch of Dele Giwa’s Granite Journalism at the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos.Buy Maps
The book, organised around Giwa’s writings for Daily Times, Sunday Concord and Newswatch, was presented at an event organised by Newswatch alumni.
Recounting the incident, Adedeji said he was on duty when a company bus brought Giwa to the hospital at about 12:30 pm.
“I was the doctor on duty for the weekend. I saw people running, saying, ‘They brought Dele Giwa’.
“So, we took Uncle Dele to the emergency room. What I saw, I have never seen again since in my practice. He was shattered. His two limbs were open, and he was bleeding.
“But he was still talking. He said, ‘Dokun, se mi o ni ku sha? (I hope I will not die?).’ I said, ‘I don’t know,’” he said.
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Adedeji said Dele Giwa died at about 1 pm, adding that the injuries were so severe that he would not have been able to live normally even if he had survived.
The doctor said he kept the clothes and shoes he wore while treating Giwa for five years because they were stained with the journalist’s blood.
“Uncle Dele was not just my patient. He was like a brother. He treated me like a brother,” he said.
Adedeji added that Giwa repeatedly asked about his wife, Funmi, and his daughter, Aisha, who was at home when the bomb exploded.
According to the doctor, Giwa asked, “How is Aisha? Do you know anything about Aisha?”
Giwa was 39 when he died. His assassination occurred two days after he was questioned by officials of the State Security Service over an allegation relating to arms importation.
He had also written about the second-tier foreign exchange market policy introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), warning that its failure could provoke public anger against the country’s leaders.Buy Maps
The circumstances surrounding his killing remain unresolved.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has marked the 40th anniversary of Giwa’s death by calling for renewed efforts to protect press freedom and the safety of journalists.
In a statement on Monday, NBA President Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya said the anniversary should remind Nigerians of the need to protect those who question the exercise of power.
The association said lawyers and journalists shared a responsibility to hold authorities accountable and give a voice to people who might otherwise go unheard.
Media Rights Agenda also urged the Federal Government to investigate Giwa’s assassination and prosecute those responsible.Track Exec Orders
The organisation said the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the government on February 16, 2024, to investigate Giwa’s killing and other unresolved murders of journalists and ensure the prosecution of those responsible.
MRA’s deputy executive director Ayode Longe said the government had yet to demonstrate progress in implementing the judgment.
He urged the Attorney-General of the Federation, the police and other relevant authorities to disclose the steps taken to investigate the case.
Mr Longe said resolving the killing would demonstrate the government’s commitment to protecting journalists and ending impunity for attacks against media professionals.
Source:QEDNG
