The family of the 81-year-old Pa Dennis Okugbaye, the treasurer of the Okuama community in the Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State, who died in military detention on December 10, 2024, have explained the circumstances surrounding his death.
The revelation came as the Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori and the military authorities have yet to make a statement six days after Pa Okugbaye died.
Family sources, who did not want their names mentioned for security reasons, told our correspondent that they paid N140,000 for fuel to the military to carry their sick father from Port Harcourt to Asaba.
The PUNCH gathered that Pa Okugbaye was being transported from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, by the military officers to 63 Brigade, Asaba, Delta State, when he allegedly died.
“We were told that our father is very sick and we should send N140,000 to buy fuel to transport him to Asaba so that we (the family) can take him to hospital.
“We sent the money and were told to come to 63 Brigade, Asaba to receive our father on Monday, December 9. They warned us that only his daughter would receive him.
“On Monday morning, we came to Asaba, then our sister moved to the military barrack, 63 Brigade, Asaba, to receive him but she was there till around 5 pm, no signal. We informed some of our leaders, including Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, of the development.
“We went back home, it was on Tuesday when we were calling to know the next step that we were told that our father died on the road when they were about to come,” the sources said.
They added that to date, the military authority or the governor had not called them over the development.
Pa Okugbaye’s death came barely a week after the death of the community President General, Pa James Oghoroko, in military detention.
The community leaders, Pa Oghoroko (now deceased), Pa Okugbaye (now deceased), Prof Arthur Ekpekpo, Chief Belvis Adogbo, Mrs Mabel Owhemu and Mr Dennis Malaka, were, between August 18 and 20, 2024, arrested by the army and had been kept incommunicado in detention without trial.
Their arrests followed the killing of 17 soldiers on a peace mission to resolve the tussle between Okuama and Okoloba communities on March 14, 2024.
Efforts to reach the Commissioner for Information, Dr Ifeanyi Osuoza and the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr Festus Ahon, failed as calls and messages sent to them were not responded to as of the time of filing this report.
A social critic, Mr Zik Gbemre, berated Oborevwori for his failure to call the army to order.
In a statement made available to journalists on Sunday, Gbemre said the reported death of two leaders of the Okuama community in military detention and the fear for the lives of four others still being held unlawfully exposed the worsening institutional failures.
“Oborevwori shying away from his duty to call the army to order in gross abuse of power in the state is very bad and shameful as the chief security officer of the state.
“In the last couple of days, what is happening in Delta is appalling, very shameful and inciting,” he said.
