From Ighomuaye Lucky, Benin
The Edo State Association of the Deaf said automatic employment for the wife of the murdered deaf and mute Efe Ogbeide would help alleviate the burden on the young family he left behind.
The association disclosed this during a protest march to the premises of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Edo State Council, in Benin.
Addressing journalists, the Chairman of the association, Mr Eromosele Kingsley Irabor, said Mr Efe, who went to the site to supervise a building project at Obazagbon Community in Oredo Local Government Area of the state, was gunned down by trigger-happy, criminal-minded persons over a land tussle in the community.
Mr Irabor said the late Mr Efe was not just a man of peace; he was a friend, a son, a father, a brother, a husband, and a shining star in their community, whose children have now been rendered fatherless while his wife has become a widow.
Irabor added that the deceased left behind three children, and the government should do everything in its power to train them from secondary school to university level.
He further blamed the government for not including sign language in their media houses, stressing that, had it been included, the deceased might have known about the ongoing communal conflict in Obazagbon Community.
“A communal clash have been ranging on at Obazagbon for almost 20 years; as a deaf person, I have never heard about it, let alone of the area, until the gruesome murder of late Mr Efe Ogbeide.
“Here comes inaccessibility to information; have Efe heard about the communal clash, he will never have walked into his death.
“This is a wake-up call for all media houses and public places in Edo State to make information accessible to the deaf.
“Enlistment of the service of Sign Language Interpreters wouldn’t cost much comparing to loss of lives,” Irabor said.
He further called for adequate security for the deaf and persons with disabilities in the state.
Addressing the protesters in Benin, the Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Edo State Council, Dr Festus Alenkhe, said the media will help amplify their voices.
He assured them that justice will be served, just as he advised them to go about their protest peacefully.
Recall that the Edo State Police Command said it has arrested eight persons in connection with the killing.
They are Obayuwana Happy (25), Uhunwangho Everest (52), 21-year-old Chidera Umeh, Joshua Edo (50), Simon Benjamin (39), Odion Adagbonyin (43), Kennedy Ohro (42), and 41-year-old Osayi Adagbonyin.
The prompt arrest of the suspects was said to have been made possible by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Iyekogba Division, in conjunction with the operatives of “Operation Rescue” and the Anti-Kidnapping Unit.