My brother’s beheading haunts me daily – Oyo teacher’s sibling

For Samuel Oyedokun, the pain is still raw. Days after his younger brother, Michael Oyedokun, a Mathematics teacher at Community High School, Ahoro-Esinle, in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, was abducted and gruesomely killed by kidnappers in Oyo State, the US-based Nigerian says the family remains traumatised and devastated. He speaks to WALE AKINSELURE about the tragedy that has shaken his family

Who was Michael Oyedokun to the family?

He was the first son of his mother. He had five siblings who are still alive. His mother died last year. We were in Nigeria for the burial of his mother last year. His mother was the second wife of my dad. He was my half-brother. He was next to me in the lineage of the family. I was his immediate elder brother. In most of his documentation, he listed me as his next of kin. As a person, he was my follower; he was always with me. He was dedicated, very humble, and easy-going; he was the epitome of humility and dedication. I studied Mathematics for my first degree; he also studied Mathematics. I attend Apostolic Faith Church; he joined me. So, that is how close he was to me. He was my mouthpiece in the family. He coordinated his other siblings. There is one other elder brother of mine. So, we still have an 80-year-old Oyedokun, who is the eldest in the family.

You mentioned that his mother is late. What about your father?

How old was Michael when he died?

He was born on September 26, 1968. So, he was meant to be 58 years old by September.

Tell us about his immediate family.

He got married in 2007. He had his first son in 2008 and his second son in 2010. So, he had two sons. His wife and two sons are still alive.

Did he ever consider relocating abroad like you?

I left Nigeria for the United States in 2008. I made a little effort for him to come abroad. But, luckily for him, he got a teaching appointment with the Oyo State Government, which gave me some relief because those of us who japa in those days were looking for greener pastures. I graduated before him, but I couldn’t get a state appointment, despite my B.Sc. Ed in Mathematics. I didn’t get the privilege of a government job, but he was lucky to get the state appointment, so it was something to hold on to and remain in Nigeria with. He was content; he did not have that push to come abroad. Even when I got settled here and sent him a lot of job applications, he was never pushy about it. Mike was content and would say, “Brother, this place is okay; I am okay.” On the job, he rose to become a Vice Principal. He had a few years left before retirement.

How did you get the news of your brother’s abduction?

I got the news through social media. I know that my brother always travelled from Ogbomoso to Esinele Community High School, where he was a teacher. On that Friday morning, I saw on social media that there had been an attack on schools in Oyo. I could easily identify my brother’s school from the pictures I saw on social media. When I saw the pictures, I was shocked because he never told me that his school was in such a vulnerable environment. Whenever I called him, I used to express my fears about the news of insecurity in Nigeria that we keep hearing. Here abroad, I don’t know why, but the news we hear about Nigeria is usually the bad news. We hear about the activities of Fulani herdsmen, Boko Haram, and ISWAP, and that was why I didn’t come to Nigeria for many years. It was only about three years ago that I started coming to Nigeria again since I left. The burial of his mother was the second time I came to Nigeria. I was devastated when I got the news. I was not myself when I got the message.

Did you immediately contact family members after hearing the news?

Yes, I did. I made several calls. In fact, I got the news on the evening of that Friday. Earlier, Michael’s wife had been calling members of the family. So, by the time I called, she told me that Michael had not returned home, which was very unusual for him. She said Michael usually returned home immediately after school and was usually at home between 3 pm and 4 pm at most. He would always attend one meeting or the other in Ogbomoso later in the evening. She said they were looking for Michael, and then I knew that something had happened.

After he was kidnapped, did the abductors reach out to the family?

We would have loved them to reach out to us because immediately I heard the bad news that Friday night, I started reaching out to friends and family that Nigeria had happened to me. I told them to get ready because, in about three or four days, the kidnappers would ask him to speak with us. He was with two phones. So, I was expecting a call, but the call never came. No ransom was requested (weeps for a long time). After three days, I was expecting his call that they were demanding N10m or whatever amount. I would have told him, “Mike, that is why I am here. I am here for you. As long as I am alive, you will get out of their den alive.” But look at me now, where is my Michael? How much? I can’t get him back (weeps again).

How did you react after seeing the video?

Nigeria, you killed my brother. And Nigeria happened to me (weeps uncontrollably). Up till now, I am still crying. I saw his head cut off. I saw that dagger. I saw his blood. I saw him mention his name (weeps again). I saw him. I saw his head cut off. I saw the dagger. I saw the blood.

What has this tragedy done to the family emotionally?

How traumatised is the family right now?

I am concerned about the emotional safety of his wife and children. They are demoralised. If they see any shadow, they are already terrified. If I close my eyes, I see blood and the head of my brother being cut off (weeps again). I keep seeing the picture of that dagger. If that can happen to me, you can imagine the state of the wife and children. I don’t know how they will survive this.

Do you feel the security agencies and government did not do enough to avert your brother’s killing?

I don’t know the bottleneck; I don’t know where the problem is; I don’t know what is holding them back. I don’t know the level of infiltration in our system. And we are being killed one by one (weeps again). Who will be next? My brother is gone. I don’t know who will be next.

What would justice look like for your family?

I don’t know why people God has prepared ahead of time to fight these bandits have not been given the go-ahead. I don’t know why our leaders are deceiving us by saying they are doing everything within their power to tackle this menace. Now my brother has been killed; Joel Adesiyan, another teacher, was shot dead. My brother was kidnapped and had to walk for many hours, for many miles, inside the forest before they eventually cut off his head on Sunday.