A former Governor of Oyo State, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, has debunked claims by a former Osun State Governor, Chief Bisi Akande, that he has crucial information regarding the murder of Chief Bola Ige, a former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice.
The Otun Olubadan of Ibadanland said this in an interview with journalists at his official residence in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
Ladoja wondered why Akande, who said he knew many things about the assassination that he would not disclose, did not tell the public what the exact circumstances that surrounded the killing of the former AGF on December 23, 2001.
Chief Akande had, over the weekend, raised fresh concerns about the unresolved assassination of Chief Ige, suggesting that Ladoja could have significant information about the murder.
This is coming about twenty-four years after the brutal assassination of Chief Bola Ige, who was assassinated on December 23, 2001, in his Ibadan residence.
In an explosive interview with ace broadcaster, Edmund Obilo, in Ibadan, which was aired at the weekend, Akande lamented that key figures who might have shed more light on the case, including a former Oyo State governor, Lam Adesina, had died.
He said, “There are many things that die with people. I know Lam Adesina went to court over the matter, and I also know his successor, (Rashidi) Ladoja, withdrew the case. Ask Ladoja; he would know more about Bola Ige’s death.”
In a rebuttal, Ladoja said old age had probably affected the memory of the former Osun Governor to remember what happened during the period.
Ladoja said, “Chief Bola Ige was assassinated on December 23, 2001. I became governor on May 29, 2003, which was 18 months before my tenure began.
“I didn’t withdraw the case. My government didn’t withdraw any case.
“The case was even prosecuted by the Supremce Court. Chief Akande lied against me, and he is old. This is not his first time. People say he lies. Even Baba Adebanjo said he lied in his book.
“We are all deeply saddened by Ige’s death. We are all concerned about his murder; I was very close to Chief Bola Ige when he was alive.”
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