Offa bank robbery judgment splits community

The recent judgment of the Kwara State High Court on the Offa banks robbery has divided the community. Daily Trust reports that Justice Haleema Saliman after a six years trial sentenced the remaining five suspects to death by hanging last week. They are Ayoade Akinnibosun, Azeez Salahudeen, Niyi Ogundiran, Ibikunle Ogunleye, and Adeola Abraham. On […]

The recent judgment of the Kwara State High Court on the Offa banks robbery has divided the community.

Daily Trust reports that Justice Haleema Saliman after a six years trial sentenced the remaining five suspects to death by hanging last week.

They are Ayoade Akinnibosun, Azeez Salahudeen, Niyi Ogundiran, Ibikunle Ogunleye, and Adeola Abraham.

On Thursday, the home branch of the Offa Descendants’ Union (ODU) called on the Kwara state government to revisit the incident.

Addressing journalists in Offa, the chairman of the union, Chief Tajudeen Lanre Shittu, said though the community welcomed the judgement, it expressed reservations ‘that many questions have not been answered’.

They called on the state government to expedite action on the execution of the judgement.

‘There is the need for a holistic probing of all the factors, notions and personalities, so as to remove the public impression that the Nigeria Police investigation on the incident is incomplete and certain individuals are being covered up.

“The community is unsatisfied with how the police command handled the investigation and expressed reservations. Those who supplied the vehicle used for the robbery and all those mentioned during the course of trial should be investigated”.

“This is Offa community unnegotiable demands and prayers”, he submitted.

But in a statement last night, some ‘leaders of thought and indigenes under the aegis of Offa Koya, Offa Kowosi, dismiss the position of the home branch adding that it was politically motivated

They accused the ODU home branch chairman of using the community’s name for cheap politics.

‘Chief Tajudeen Lanre Shittu and his group do not in any way represent the position of the community. He is doing the bidding of some political masters’, Kunle Afolayan, its chairman said.

Afolayan described the trial and judgement as justice duly served and frowned at an attempt to undermine the efforts made by the police during investigation and getting justice for the victims.

“We categorically state that neither the Offa people nor their leaders were aware of nor endorsed the press conference called Chief Tajudeen Lanre Shittu.

“It is a Machiavellian manoeuvre orchestrated by some powers in the state in a bid to implicate or maliciously smear the reputation of certain key figures, he added.

When contacted last night, the national secretary of the national branch of the ODU, Mrs Wosilat McCarthy, said Shittu cannot be speaking for the ODU.

“That is his own opinion, that is certainly Shittu’s opinion, not that of the national body of the ODU.

“For us, the police have done their work very well and we express faith and trust in the judiciary over the judgement and leave whatever remains to God”, McCarthy added.